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I 


Charley  Ross. 


Walter  Lewis  Ross. 


THE  FATHER'S  STORY 

OF 

Charley  Ross 


KIDNAPPED  CHILD: 

CONTAINING  A 

FULL  AND  COMPLETE  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  ABDUCTION  OF 
CHARLES  BREWSTER  ROSS 

FROM   THE   HOME  OF   HIS  PARENTS   IN  GttRMANTOWN,  WITH  THE   PURSUIT    OF    THB 

ABDUCTORS    AND    THEIR    TRAGIC    DEATH  ;    THE    VARIOUS    INCIDENTS 

CONNECTED  WITH   THE  SEARCH  FOR   THE   LOST   BOY  ;   THE 

DISCOVERY  OF  OTHER  LOST  CHILDREN, 

Etc.,     Etc. 

With  Facsimiles  of  Letters  from  the  Abductors, 

THE    WHOLE    CAREFULLY    PREPARED    FROM    HIS     OWN    NOTES    AND    MEMORANDA, 

AND   FROM   INFORMATION  OBTAINED   FROM   THE   DETECTIVE  POLICE 

AND   OTHERS   ENGAGED   IN  THE  SEARCH, 

By   OHRISTIAN  K.  BOSS, 

OF  GERMANTOWN,  (PHILADELPHIA). 

With  x'ortraits  of  Charley  and  his  brother  Walter,  and  of  other   Boys 

Mistaken  for  Charley;  Views  of  his   Parents'  Home, 

Etc.,  Etc.,  Etc. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
JOHN  E.  POTTER  AND  COMPANY, 

No.  617  Sansom  Street. 

cl^'/fc-'.  » 


Uin^. 


n 


Entered  According  to  Act  of  Congress  in  the  year  1876,  by 

CHRISTIAN  K.  ROSS, 

in  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


•  .  »••    -•-  •' 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Portrait  of  Charley  Ross. 
Portrait  of  Walter  Lewis  Ross. 
Nursery  in  Charley's  Home. 
Fac-Simile  of  First  Letter  from  Abductors. 
Reduced  Fac-Simile  of  the  Second  Letter. 
Fac-Simile  of  Address  and  Envelope. 
Swing  in  Charley's  Playground. 
Reduced  Fac-Slmile  of  Letter  Number  Twelve. 
Reduced  Fac-Simile  of  Letter  Number  Twenty-Two. 
Fac-Simile  of  the  Rondout  Lighthouse  Letter. 
Home  of  Charley  Ross. 

Washington  Lane,  Germantown,  from  which  Charley  was  Stolen. 
Portrait  of  Charley  Kenny,  brought  from  Cuba. 
Portrait  of  Child  found  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 

Portrait  of  Wurzburg  Child,  traced  by  the  United  States  Consul  at  Nu- 
remberg, Bavaria. 
Portrait  of  Henry  Lachmueller,  found  in  Illinois. 


M1265G4 


INTRODUCTION, 


THE  ABDUCTION, 


CHAPTER  I. 


CHAPTER  II. 
THE  FIRST   LETTER  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS,  AND  BEGIN- 
NING OF  THE  SEARCH  BY  THE  POLICE, 

CHAPTER  III. 
LETTERS   FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS  AND   INCIDENTS  CON- 
NECTED WITH  THE  SEARCH,         .... 

CHAPTER  IV. 
PUBLIC  INTEREST   IN  THE  CASE — REWARD  OFFERED, 

CHAPTER  V. 
LETTERS    FROM    ABDUCTORS    CONTINUED — MEMORABLE 
TRIP  TO  ALBANY,  N.  Y., 

CHAPTER  VI. 
LETTERS   OF   SYMPATHY — TRACING  OF  CHILDREN, 

(v) 


7 
25 

90 

"3 
147 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 
THE    REAL    ABDUCTORS    SUSPECTED — EMPLOYMENT    OF 
THE      PINKERTON     DETECTIVE     AGENCY     IN     THE 
SEARCH, 173 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
SUGGESTIONS     FROM     SPIRITUALISTS    AND     CONVICTS — 

SEARCH  IN  TRENTON,   N.   J.,         .  .  .  .         200 

CHAPTER  IX. 
LAST  LETTERS  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS — THEIR  TRAGIC 

DEATH — ^VIGOROUS  SEARCH  FOR  CHARLEY,    .  .         224 

CHAPTER  X. 
LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED  TO  THEIR  PARENTS,  .  .        269 

CHAPTER  XI. 
INTERESTING  CASES  OF  TRACED  CHILDREN — INTERVIEW 

WITH  A  SHOWMAN, 3II 

CHAPTER  XII. 
A  MYSTERY    NOT   CLEARED   UP — CHILDREN  TRACED    IN 

THE  UNITED  STATES  AND  NOVA  SCOTIA,      .  .         353 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
TRIAL  OF  WILLIAM  WESTERVELT — THEORIES — CONCLU- 
SION OF  NARRATIVE, 39O 

APPENDIX. 
THE  DISAPPEARANCE  OF  FREDDIE  LEIB — APPEAL  OF  HIS 

PARENTS  TO  AID   IN  THE  SEARCH   FOR  HIM,  .         425 


mTEODUCTTOIf 


CHARLES  P.  KRAUTH,  D.D.,  LL.D, 

Vice-Provost  of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  and  Nor- 
ton Professor  of  Theology  in  the  Lutheran  Theo- 
logical Seminary,   Philadelphia;   Author  of     • 
"  The  Conservative  Reformation  and  its 
Theology,"  "  Berkeley's  Principles, 
with  Prolegomena  And  Annota- 
tions," ETC.,  ETC.,  ETC. 


INTRODUCTION. 

HE  world,  from  of  old  to  our  day,  is  full  of 
stories  of  stolen  children.  They  are  stories  of 
bereavements  sharper  than  death.  The  sorrow 
of  a  fixed  and  finished  calamity  abates  with  time;  the 
sorrow  of  suspense  grows  intenser  the  longer  it  endures. 
If  healing  be  possible,  to  know  the  worst  begins  the 
healing.  The  death  of  a  child,  as  it  is  one  of  the  deep- 
est of  our  human  calamities,  has  connected  with  it  some 
of  God's  sweetest  solaces,  under  that  law  of  mercy  which 
tempers  our  life  of  mystery  with  its  compensations. 
The  stealing  of  a  child  involves  all  the  sorrows  of  a 
child's  death,  without  the  relief  of  those  hopes  which 
first  staunch  the  bleeding,  and  at  last  heal  the  wound. 
"  Let  me  fall  into  the  hand  of  the  Lord,"  said  David, 
"but  let  me  not  fall  into  the  hand  of  man."  The  loss  of 
a  child  by  the  hand  of  God  is  the  child's  sure  gain,  and 
may  be  made  ours.  He  takes  it  to  the  infinite  purity 
and  absolute  safety  of  His  own  presence ;  and,  of  the 
dead  child  now,  we  may  say  with  a  more  assured  trust 
what  was  said  of  a  dead  child  in  the  gray  twilight  of 
the  dawn  of  Revelation,  "it  is  well  with  the  child." 
The  child  that  dies  we  may  be  with  forever;  one-half 
of  a  sad  contingency  vanishes  as  it  passes  away.  The 
loss  of  a  child  by  the  hand  of  man  involves  treachery 
and  cruelty,  the  despair  of  the  family,  the  misery  of 
the  child,  its  rearing  in  crime  and  shame  for  ruin,  or — 

(9) 


U)^.     .....       :    .INTRODUCTION. 

;*:  /:  '•.•    :  :..:.••'•.• 

less  wretched  fate — its  early  death  by  neglect  or  vio- 
lence. 

Among  the  saddest  of  these  touching  stories,  among 
the  most  deeply  veiled  of  these  mysteries,  is  the  story 
and  mystery  of  Charles  Brewster  Ross.  The  story 
is  already  familiar  in  various  degrees  of  fullness  and 
accuracy  to  millions  of  sympathetic  hearts.  The  van- 
ished angel  of  the  home,  "the  frolic  and  the  gentle," 
has  given  to  the  firesides  of  Christendom  a  household 
name,  and  the  children  of  continents  whisper  of  their 
little  lost  brother  in  their  play.  It  is  a  world-wide 
story,  every  detail  of  which  has  been  eagerly  sought, 
and  in  enlarging  which  unscrupulous  invention  has 
found  its  account.  Yet  now,  for  the  first  time,  is  it  told 
with  entire  accuracy  in  all  its  details,  by  the  hand  which 
has  proved  itself  the  most  competent  to  do  it  justice. 
It  needs  but  a  glance  at  the  strange,  mournful  history, 
which  lies  in  the  hands  of  the  reader,  to  see  that  love 
and  grief  have  united  with  the  hope  long  deferred,  yet 
refusing  utterly  to  die,  and  have  given  to  the  father  in 
this  pathetic  chronicle,  an  inspiration  which  imparts  to 
the  book  a  wonderful  power.  It  is  a  power  which  no 
merely  literary  skill  or  tact  could  have  imparted  to  it 
It  is  a  people's  book,  simple,  true  to  life — a  book  in 
which  heart  touches  heart. 

The  writer  of  this  Introduction  has  consented  to  pre- 
pare it,  because,  from  the  very  inception  of  the  work, 
he  has  had  such  personal  and  direct  opportunities  of 
knowing  the  purpose  and  spirit  in  which  it  has  been 
prepared,  as  to  justify  him  in  expressing  the  conviction 
that  it  merits,  in  every  respect,  the  cordial  reception  with 
which  he  is  confident  it  will  be  greeted.    It  has  been 


INTRODUCTION.  1 1 

written  In  part  to  meet  a  strong  and  general  desire  for  a 
full  and  reliable  statement  of  facts,  which  are  so  unique 
and  full  of  intense  interest,  and  many  of  which  have  been 
wholly  unknown,  or  have  been  very  incorrectly  or  in- 
adequately brought  before  the  public.  But  more  than 
by  this  the  father  has  been  moved  by  the  hope  that  the 
wide  circulation  of  the  book  may  help  to  elicit  informa- 
tion which  may  yet  clear  up  the  darkness,  and  lead  to 
the  finding  of  the  boy;  and  that  it  may  aid  in  furnishing 
means,  which  will  be  sacredly  devoted  to  prosecuting  to 
the  end,  a  search  which  will  bring  to  suspense  the  rap- 
ture of  a  final  joy,  or  the  relief  of  a  dreadful  mystery 
dispelled.  The  reader  will  rejoice  that  Mr.  Ross,  con- 
trary to  his  modest  judgment  of  his  own  abilities,  was 
induced,  by  the  urgent  representation  of  friends  in  whose 
judgment  he  confided,  to  prepare  the  work  himself 

This  book  is  a  picture  of  contrasts— the  lamb  In  the 
talons  of  the  vulture — the  innocence  of  childhood  in  the 
iron  grasp  of  calculating  murder — the  hopes  and  yearn- 
ings of  the  loving,  made  vain  by  the  savage  purpose 
and  fierce  resolution  of  the  cruel  greed  which  thwarted 
them  all — the  black  hand  of  conspiracy,  broken  at  its 
lifting  by  the  red  hand  of  vengeance.  It  is  part  of  the 
fashion  of  our  time  to  consider  crime  on  its  romantic 
side.  The  Novel  and  the  Drama  have  presented  villainy 
in  forms  which  hide  its  ugliness  and  loathsomeness 
under  various  masks  of  daring  and  skill,  and  even  of 
chivalry  and  honor.  This  dangerous  tendency  has 
been  met  not  only  by  the  graver  forms  of  protest  and 
exposure,  but  fiction  has  been  used  to  heal  fiction. 
Great  novelists  have  attempted  to  correct  the  evil  by 
faithful  representations  of  the  unrelieved  baseness,  low- 


12  INTRODUCTION. 

ncss,  dullness  and  brutality  which  are  the  real  marks 
of  most  in  the  criminal  classes,  who  prey  upon  society, 
not  with  the  bold  savagery  of  the  lion,  but  with  the 
stealthy  ferocity  of  the  hyena.  But  these  well-meant 
delineations  of  crime  as  it  is,  have  never  had  any  great 
practical  force.  Either  they  were  too  feeble  to  attract, 
too  refined  for  the  class  they  were  meant  to  reach,  or 
the  glow  of  the  genius  of  the  writers  threw  the  perilous 
charm  of  a  morbid  interest  around  the  very  wickedness 
they  meant  to  condemn.  "  Catharine,"  is  not  read,  and 
*'  Oliver  Twist,"  is  a  doubtful  book  for  the  young.  In 
this  true  story  of  Charley  Ross,  villainy  is  made  to 
unmask  itself.  Nothing  in  fiction,  since  De  Foe,  ap- 
proaches the  realistic  vividness  of  its  pictures  of  the 
actual  character  of  the  villain.  We  see  in  it  his  coarse- 
ness, his  prosaic  baseness,  his  brutish  greed,  his  dreary 
misery,  his  thwarted  plan,  his  bloody  death.  He  lives 
like  a  beast,  and  like  a  beast  is  killed  as  he  prowls  at 
night  around  the  abodes  of  men. 

The  young  will  see  how  little  there  is  in  the  real  life 
of  the  bad,  correspondent  with  the  shams  and  lies 
with  which  the  footlights  and  the  sensational  story 
invest  the  knaves,  who  dazzle  and  lure  the  young  with 
examples  of  crime.  In  the  letters,  so  faithfully  repro- 
duced in  this  volume,  the  criminals  reveal  their  own 
character  with  an  unmeant  fidelity,  in  j^ictures  to  which 
not  even  the  genius  of  a  Shakespeare  would  be  equal 
He  could  paint  the  thing  with  an  unrivaled  touch; 
but  here  is  the  unpainted  thing  itself— that  naked,  hu- 
man character,  which  genius  grows  great  in  reflecting. 

It  needs  but  a  little  thoughtful  pausing  on  the  facts 
which  this  book  presents,  to  realize  how  much  the  com- 


INTRODUCTION.  1 3 

munity  owes  to  Mr.  Ross  for  his  earnest  and  persistent 
efforts  to  regain  possession  of  his  child,  without  acceding 
to  the  demands  of  the  scoundrels  who  had  stolen  him. 
Had  he  recovered  his  boy  by  a  facile  compliance  with 
their  plans,  the  brilliant  and  easy  success  of  so  great  a 
crime  might  have  led  to  a  repetition  of  the  same  sort 
of  atrocious  wickedness  to  a  fearful  extent.  One  such 
prize,  so  promptly  drawn  in  such  a  lottery,  would  have 
awakened  the  cupidity  and  sharpened  the  cunning  of 
that  large  class,  who  are  always  on  the  alert  to  discover 
new  and  hopeful  openings  for  their  unscrupulous  vil- 
lainy. 

The  vastness  of  our  land,  the  inaccessible  character 
of  its  recesses  in  mountain,  forest,  marsh  and  inlet,  the 
ease  of  rapid  passage,  the  absence  of  a  passport  system, 
and  of  other  forms  of  restriction  which  embarrass  the 
movements  of  criminals,  would  make  it  one  of  the  most 
insecure  parts  of  the  world,  if  the  idea  should  once 
fairly  possess  the  mind  of  the  criminal  classes  that  the 
abduction  of  children  could  be  made  a  remunerative 
method  of  obtaining  money.  There  is  not  a  home  of 
happy  and  favored  little  ones  in  our  land  which  is  not 
more  secure  because  of  the  utter  failure  of  the  wicked- 
ness which  hoped  to  collect  ransom  by  the  abduction 
of  Charley  Ross.  The  men  who  did  him  such  cruel 
wrong  died  by  violence.  The  issue  of  all  their  cunning 
showed  them  to  be  miserable  fools — thwarted,  baffled, 
and  crushed  just  as  success  seemed  most  near.  Evad- 
ing the  officials  of  the  law  by  wonderful  adroitness,  and 
making  an  accomplice  of  one  of  them,  exposure  and 
death  met  them  when  they  supposed  there  was  nothing 
to  fear.     The  crime  which  became  the  occasion  of  their 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

death  was  urged  upon  them  in  part  by  the  necessities 
which  had  grown  out  of  the  reluctance  of  Mr.  Ross  to 
compromise  the  demands  of  justice,  by  yielding  at  once 
to  the  suggestion  of  affection-  and  compounding  with 
crime.  The  result,  as  we  see  it  now,  has  involved  an 
awful  loss  to  him — the  loss  of  the  darling  of  his  home; 
but  it  is  a  loss  which  has  made  thousands  of  homes 
safer  and  happier.  His  boy,  should  he  never  be  recov- 
ered, will  be  enrolled  among  the  Innocents — the  victims 
of  cruelty  in  childhood,  whose  sufferings,  because  of 
their  tender  years,  were  knit  up  with  blessings  which 
came  to  others.  Closest  to  Christ,  children  seem  in 
large  measure  ordained  **  to  fill  up  that  which  is  behind 
of  the  afflictions  of  Christ,"  A  faithful  Saviour  will 
watch  His  martyrs.  Wherever  this  little  boy  may  be, 
he  is  not  forgotten  in  the  heart  of  infinite  love;  not  un- 
watched  by  the  eye  that  never  sleeps.  The  hand  that 
has  spread  the  veil  will  lift  it.  God  is  reserving  the 
sequel,  but  it  will  be  worthy  of  Him.  And  in  the  hours 
— it  may  be  the  years — of  suspense  which  are  in  reserve, 
the  fervent  prayers  of  many  a  Christian  home  for  the 
desolate  household  will  be  mingled  with  the  grateful 
recognition  of  the  truth,  that  the  father  of  this  boy  is 
entitled  to  a  place  among  good  men,  whose  fidelity  to 
principle  has  made  their  sorrows  fruitful  for  the  welfare 
of  mankind. 

C.  P.  Krauth, 
Jtdy  nth,  i8y6.  4004  Pine  St.,  Phi  la. 


AUTHOR'S   PREFACE. 


ROM  a  letter  recently  written  to  me  by  a  gen 
tleman  of  high  social  and  political  standing, 
residing  in  Germany,  I  make  the  following 
extract :  "  Your  daily  experience  must  be  most  re- 
markable since  this  great  sorrow  overtook  you.  The 
day  will  come  when  the  public  will  demand,  in  book 
form,  a  complete  history  of  this  most  extraordinary 
case.  Such  a  book,  containing  all  letters,  testimony, 
photographs  etc.,  etc.,  will  be  of  never-failing  interest, 
especially  to  the  young.  If  the  boy  should  be  alive,  in 
after  years,  a  perusal  of  such  a  book  might  recall  his 
early  experience,  and  ultimately  be  the  means  of  his 
restoration.  We  all  know  that  stranger  things  have 
happened." 

These  kind  and  suggestive  words  express  the  same 
ideas  that  have  been  frequently  advanced  by  many 
other  persons  who  have  asked  whether,  with  a  view  to 
publication,  I  have  preserved  papers  and  kept  memo- 
randums of  what  was  done  in  the  case  of  the  abduction 
of  my  little  son,  and  of  the  search  for  him  which  has 
thus  far  been  vain. 

I  little  imagined,  in  the  early  period,  the  magnitude 
which  this  subject  subsequently  assumed,  and  therefore 
was  not  careful  to  keep  a  record  of  many  things  that 
occurred;  but  the  most  important  events  are  so  forcibly 
impressed  on  my  mind,  that,  with  the  aid  of  those  im- 

(17) 


1 8  author's  preface. 

mediately  connected  with  me  in  the  search,  I  will  be 
able  to  recall  most  of  the  incidents. 

It  was  not  my  purpose  to  prepare  this  history  until 
some  definite  information  had  been  obtained  as  to 
whether  the  child  was  living  or  dead.  But  on  reflec- 
tion I  have  thought  the  publication  of  the  narrative  at 
this  time  might  assist  in  explaining  the  mystery  which 
is  still  connected  with  the  concealment  of  the  child,  or 
that  possibly,  through  the  perusal  of  the  book,  some  one 
not  familiar  with  the  circumstances  might  be  enabled 
to  give  a  new  and  fortunate  direction  to  the  search,  or 
perhaps  that  the  child  himself,  seeing  the  illustrations 
of  once  familiar  scenes,  or  learning  from  some  incident 
herein  related  something  to  suggest  early  recollections, 
might  be  led  to  his  home. 

Another  object  in  issuing  the  book  now  is  that  of 
obtaining  the  means  to  enable  me  to  continue  a  search 
that  cannot  be  abandoned  until  the  child  is  found  alive, 
or  his  death  is  certainly  proven  to  us. 

Scarcely  a  day  passes  even  now  without  receiving  in- 
formation supposed  to  be  in  some  way  connected  with 
the  matter,  or  without  hearing  of  suspicious  persons  who 
possibly  could  shed  some  light  on  the  mystery,  or  of 
children  in  different  parts  of  the  country  thought  to  be 
my  little  boy.  To  examine  into  everything  brought  to 
my  notice  gives  me  almost  constant  employment,  and 
is  attended  with  great  expense  of  both  time  and  money. 

There  is  connected  with  the  abduction,  the  search, 
the  tragic  death  of  the  abductors,  the  finding  of  lost 
children,  a  great  deal  of  interest  which  it  is  proper  the 
public  should  know;  and  the  simple  facts  as  they 
occurred  are  grouped  together  in  the  narrative,  with 


AUTHORS    PREFACE.  I9 

regard*  to  exactness  rather  than  with  any  attempt  at 
embellishment. 

Other  children  have  been  lost  and  in  some  instances 
carried  away,  and  not  restored  to  their  parents  for  long 
years,  and  sometimes  have  never  been  heard  of;  and 
the  interest  awakened  in  their  behalf  and  that  of  their 
distressed  parents  has  been  confined  to  their  immediate 
friends  and  acquaintances.  In  the  present  instance, 
however,  the  motive  actuating  the  kidnappers,  and  the 
terrible  threats  made  through  anonymous  letters,  aroused 
the  indignation  of  every  one  against  the  criminals  who 
had  so  cruelly  taken  an  innocent  child,  and  placed  his 
life  in  jeopardy  to  procure  a  ransom  from  the  parents 
they  had  so  inhumanly  robbed. 

The  public  interest  which  has  been  so  universally 
manifested  since  the  abduction  of  my  little  son,  and 
which  ever  and  anon  shows  itself  whenever  a  rumor  is 
circulated  appearing  to  relate,  however  remotely,  to  the 
dark  secret,  is  due  to  the  fact  that  a  new  crime  was 
attempted  to  be  inaugurated  in  our  country,  and  to  the 
insecurity  felt  by  every  family  for  their  own  children,  lest 
they  should  meet  a  loss  similar  to  that  which  has  befallen 
our  own.  The  feeling  is  everywhere  spread  over  our 
own  country;  it  has  extended  to  Europe  and  to  South 
America,  as  shown  in  the  many  letters  received ;  and  as 
I  am  credibly  informed,  has  reached  the  furthermost 
parts  of  Asia.  Kidnapping  a  child  for  the  purpose  of 
extorting  money  for  his  release,  and  holding  his  life 
contingent  on  the  payment  of  the  ransom,  is  so  atrocious 
a  crime  that  no  apprehensions  were  felt  that  it  would 
ever  be  perpetrated  among  us.  No  laws  are  found  in 
the  books  of  any  State  which  anticipated  the  commis- 


20  AUTHORS   PREFACE. 

sion  of  SO  unnatural  an  offense,  nor  was  any  punish 
ment  provided  commensurate  with  its  heinousness. 
The  Legislatures  of  a  few  States  however  have,  since  its 
commission,  taken  action  on  the  matter,  and  passed 
acts  defining  the  crime,  and  affixing  severe  penalties  for 
its  perpetration  hereafter. 

A  ransom  is  a  sum  of  money  fixed  by  the  kidnappers, 
and  hence  is  entirely  different  from  a  reward  offered  by 
a  parent  or  a  friend  for  the  return  of  the  stolen  one. 
In  the  one  case  the  sufferer  has  no  choice,  but  must 
accede  to  the  demands  of  the  villains  or  accept  the 
consequences.  In  the  other  he  makes  a  voluntary 
offer  for  the  return  of  the  child. 

When  it  became  known  to  the  public  that  the  object 
of  the  kidnappers  in  stealing  the  child  was  to  exact  a 
large  sum  of  money  from  the  parents  before  giving  him 
up,  a  thrill  of  horror  ran  through  the  nation,  and  pop- 
ular sentiment  demanded  the  immediate  stamping  out 
of  this  species  of  crime,  by  securing  the  arrest  and  by 
administering  summary  and  fitting  punishment  to  the 
heartless  criminals.  Fully  appreciating  the  danger 
which  might  result  to  society  should  the  brigands 
prove  successful  in  their  first  infamous  experiment, 
the  case  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  police  author- 
ities of  the  city  to  work  up  as  was  deemed  best,  with 
the  understanding  that  I  would  never  consent  to  com- 
pound the  crime,  preferring  to  wait  and  suffer  in  the 
hope  of  securing  the  criminals  with  the  child.  The 
terrible  anguish  caused  by  this  long  suspense,  to  which 
the  knowledge  of  the  child's  death  would  be  a  relief,  it 
is  impossible  to  describe. 

Our  fears,  hopes  and  aims  have  centered  for  the  past 


AUTHORS   PREFACE.  21 

two  years  upon  the  recovery  of  Charley,  and  unravel- 
ing the  mystery  connected  with  his  long  concealment. 
Forgetting  all  other  troubles  and  laying  aside  all  other 
cares,  our  time,  energies  and  means  have  been  devoted 
to  these  objects,  and  we  should  be  an  unfaithful  and 
unnatural  parent,  did  we  relinquish  the  search  without 
arriving  at  a  satisfactory  solution  of  the  whole  matter. 

The  successful  abduction  and  continued  concealment 
of  the  unfortunate  child  have  caused  the  name  of 
Charley  Ross  to  be  known  in  almost  every  house- 
hold ;  and  in  a  measure  he  has  become  the  child  of 
the  people.  Many  prayers  have  been  offered  up  for 
his  restoration,  and  many  homes  would  be  glad  to 
know  that  he  has  been  recovered. 

A  recent  article  in  the  Mothers'  Magazine  forcibly 
demonstrates  this  feeling,  and  by  permission  of  the 
author  I  avail  myself  of  an  extract  from  it. 

"  Events  of  startling  moment  have  been  crowded 
into  the  past  two  years — revolutions,  revulsions,  catas- 
trophes, crimes  and  disorders,  for  which,  in  general, 
men  must  be  held  accountable,  while  some  are 
seemingly  due  to  what  we  denominate  chance  or  ac- 
cident. Of  them,  all  the  larger  part  are  now  looked  at 
with  that  indifference  which  belongs  to  things  bygone, 
retaining  only  a  slight  hold  on  public  attention  ,  and 
many  of  them,  in  the  rush  of  present  affairs  or  newer 
emergencies,  are  well  nigh  buried  in  oblivion.  The 
edge  of  sharp  surprises  soon  wears  off.  Those  who 
have  been  for  a  while  stunned,  when  they  are  able  to 
go  about  their  business  forget  the  blow.  Partial 
calamities,  of  whatever  sort,  do  not  long  trouble  those 
untouched  by  them.     If  severe  or  of  wide  extent,  recu- 


22 

peration  may  be  speedy;  but  if  past  remedy,  they 
are  acquiesced  in.  Yet,  while  matters  lately  regarded 
as  of  prime  importance  are  scarcely  referred  to,  and 
multitudes  of  those  which  loomed  up  largely  have 
shrunken  out  of  sight,  the  fate  and  whereabouts  of  a 
child  four  years  of  age,  continue  to  awaken  an  absorb- 
ing and  universal  anxiety. 

**  The  name  of  Charley  Ross  is  familiar  to  every- 
household.  His  form,  his  pretty  features,  his  curling 
locks,  Jiis  winsome  expression,  known  to  us  by  pic- 
tures and  photographs,  would  be  recognized  at  a  glance 
if  he  could  anywhere  be  met  outside  of  his  secret  hid- 
ing place — the  little  absent  pet,  for  whom  so  many 
prayers  continually  ascend. 

"What  mother's  heart  is  not  touched?  What  parent 
does  not  feel  almost  as  though  the  sorrow  were  his  own? 
And  what  citizen  is  not  affrighted  at  such  a  precedent 
of  new  and  heinous  outrage,  and  the  inefficiency  of 
laws? 

"A  profound  and  painful  mystery  attaches  to  this 
case  of  cruel  abduction,  from  whatever  stand-point  it  is 
looked  at,  whether  as  to  the  instrumentalities  of  men  or 
a  providence  of  God.  That  this,  with  other  dark  and 
hidden  things,  will  one  day  be  brought  to  light,  and  in 
the  overrulings  of  Almighty  God,  some  merciful  de- 
signs of  His  be  traced  through  all  the  web  and  woof 
of  sinister  devices,  we  fondly  hope  and  certainly  believe. 
The  act  itself  may  well  be  called  a  'mystery  of 
iniquity'  transcending,  if  possible,  in  peculiar  baseness, 
in  cold  and  calculating  villainy,  the  very  highest  types 
of  crime. 

"  We  have  been  wont  to  think  that  there  is  in  the 


AUTHOR  S   PREFACE.  2$ 

most  abandoned  natures  some  human  feeling,  some 
capability  of  remorse,  of  being  touched  by  an  appealing 
pity. 

"  These  men  had  no  bowels  of  mercy ;  in  them  the 
eclipse  of  goodness  was  complete,  their  depravity  black 
as  Egyptian  night,  and  total.  Dragging  their  inno- 
cent prey  from  his  own  sweet  home  into  their  polluted 
den,  they  contrived  how  to  guard  themselves  at  every 
point,  and  traffic  on  parental  anguish.  Almost  prefer- 
able were  it,  within  our  civilized  bounds,  to  have  wild 
beasts  again  at  large,  against  which  the  arts  and  wiles  of 
men  can  defend  themselves,  rather  than  savage  beasts 
in  human  shape,  setting  at  naught  their  pursurers.  Few 
criminal  secrets  are  so  inscrutable  as  to  bid  defiance  to 
well-directed  and  resolute  researches.  Murder  it  has 
been  truly  said,  "  will  out,"  and  by  the  corrosive  nature 
of  guilt  gnaws  its  own  way  to  open  exposure.  The 
spoils  of  the  robber  are  from  time  to  time  unearthed, 
and  restitution  is  made;  while  this  looks  like  the  very 
triumph  of  wickedness,  as  the  most  precious  of  all 
stolen  treasures  remains  hidden,  and  the  lost  is  not 
found. 

"The  police  of  cities,  the  ingenious  plans  of  experts 
and  detectives  in  every  quarter,  the  stimulus  of  large, 
rewards — all  these,  combined  with  a  keen  sympathy 
which  has  put  all  the  humane  on  the  alert,  have  so 
far  resulted  only  in  disappointment,  and  in  hope 
deferred, 

"  Is  the  fate  of  Charley  Ross  to  be  despaired  of? 
Not  by  the  help  of  God,  if  every  parent  who  loves  his 
child,  if  the  whole  motherhood  everywhere,  is  silently 
pledged  to  join  in  and  renew  the  search." 


CHAPTER    I. 

THE  ABDUCTION. 

EARLY  two  years  have  passed  away  since  my 
two  children  were  taken  from  Germantown, 
Pa.,  in  which  place  they  were  both  born,  and 
where  I  have  resided  about  ten  years.  Germantown  is 
a  suburb  of  Philadelphia  and  within  its  corporate  limits. 

My  residence  is  on  East  Washington  Lane,  about 
seven  miles  from  the  centre  of  the  city.  The  Lane 
begins  at  Main  Street  and  runs  in  a  north-easterly 
direction.  The  distance  from  the  main  street  to  the 
Chestnut  Hill  R.  R.  station  is  about  half  a  mile. 

On  both  sides  of  the  Lane,  between  these  two  points, 
are  a  number  of  very  handsome  residences,  all  set  back 
some  distance  from  the  roadway,  and  having  well-kept 
lawns  in  front,  planted  with  trees  and  shrubbery.  The 
houses  have  from  one  to  ten  acres  of  ground  attached 
to  them,  and  all  have  kitchens,  gardens  and  stables  in 
the  rear. 

My  house  is  on  the  north  side  of  the  lane,  the  eighth 
from  the  Main  street,  and  the  second  from  the  Chestnut 
Hill  R.  R.  station ;  it  is  a  double  house  built  of  stone, 
two  stories  in  height,  and  surmounted  by  a  cupola;  it  has 
back  buildings,  and  a  piazza  built  upon  three  of  its  sides. 

It  stands  on  rising  ground,  about  fifty  feet  from  the 
road;    the  lawn  is   ornamented   with  evergreens   and 
other  trees.     Between  this  house  and  the  nearest  one 
2  (25) 


26  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

on  the  west  is  an  unoccupied  field  of  about  three  acres 
in  extent ;  in  this  field  along  the  line  of  the  road  are  a 
large  number  of  trees  and  small  bushes,  which  grow 
very  close  together  and  completely  shut  out  the  view 
of  the  road  from  any  one  looking  diagonally  in  that 
direction,  either  from  my  house  or  from  that  of  my 
neighbors  on  the  other  side  of  the  field.  It  was  between 
these  two  houses  and  opposite  the  open  field,  that  the 
abductors  carried  on  their  conversation  with  the  child- 
ren when  they  enticed  them  into  the  wagon. 

On  Friday,  June  26th,  1874,  my  two  eldest  children, 
Stoughton  and  Harry,  left  their  home  early  in  the 
morning  to  spend  their  summer  vacation  with  their 
grandmother  in  Middletown,  Dauphin  County,  Penn- 
sylvania. 

On  the  same  day  my  wife,  being  out  of  health,  went 
with  our  eldest  daughter,  Sophia,  to  Atlantic  City, 
intending  to  remain  several  weeks.  Before  leaving 
home  she  said  to  Walter  and  Charley  that  at  the  end 
of  two  weeks  she  would  send  Sophia  home,  and  they 
should  come  down  to  her.  This  proposed  visit  to  the 
seashore  was  looked  forward  to,  by  both  the  boys,  with 
much  pleasure;  and  in  two  of  the  letters  from  the 
abductors,  Charley  is  represented  as  fretting  lest  he 
should  not  get  home  in  time  to  join  his  mother  at 
Atlantic  City. 

The  members  of  the  family  remaining  at  home  were, 
in  addition  to  myself,  Walter  Lewis,  Charles  Brew- 
ster, Marian  Kimball  and  Annie  Christine  Ross,  our 
youngest  child,  Bridget  and  Sarah  Kerr,  who  took  care 
of  the  children,  Mary,  the  cook,  and  Thomas  Foley, 
gardener. 


THE    ABDUCTION.  2/ 

On  Saturday,  June  27th,  about  half  past  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  while  sitting  alone  in  the  nursery, 
Walter  came  up-  to  me  and  said  that  a  man  in  a  wagon 
had  given  Charley  and  himself  some  candy.  The  piece 
he  had  in  his  hands  was  white  and  plaited,  about  four 
inches  long.  Walter  said  Charley  did  not  want  his 
just  then,  and  that  he  was  keeping  it  for  him. 

I  asked  him  if  he  knew  who  the  man  was,  and  if  he 
had  asked  for  the  candy.  He  replied  "  No  sir,"  and 
then  went  away,  cautioned  by  me  not  to  ask  strangers 
for  anything.  The  only  thought  that  occurred  to  me 
about  the  matter  was,  that  some  one  fond  of  children 
had,  as  an  act  of  kindness,  given  the  candy  to  the  boys, 
and  the  impression  on  my  mind  was  rather  a  pleasant 
one. 

I  heard  no  more  of  the  man  who  had  given  them 
candy,  and  nothing  unusual  occurred  that  I  was  aware 
of  until  Wednesday  evening,  July  1st.  On  the  morn- 
ing of  that  day  the  children  asked  me  for  money  to  buy 
fire-crackers  for  the  Fourth  of  July.  I  told  them  I 
would  get  some  for  them,  and  be  with  them  on  the  4th; 
that  I  was  afraid  they  would  set  fire  to  the  house  or 
stable  if  alone.  Their  minds  seemed  set  on  having 
them  at  once,  and  to  please  them  I  told  them  I  would 
send  home  a  cart  load  of  sea-shore  sand  in  which  they 
could  play  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  and  they  could  fire 
their  crackers  in  it.  In  order  to  fulfil  my  promise  to 
the  children,  I  came  to  Germantown  on  July  1st  earlier 
than  usual,  bought  the  sand,  and  got  home  before  six 
o'clock. 

Not  seeing  the  little  boys,  I  inquired  of  one  of  the 
servants  where  they  were,  and  was  told  that  since  their 


28  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

bath,  they  had  been  playing  on  the  sidewalk  in  front 
of  the  house,  with  the  children  of  Mr.  McDowell,  our 
nearest  neighbor.  I  went  to  the  gate,  but  could  not  see 
them;  thinking,  however,  that  they  must  be  somewhere 
in  the  neighborhood,  I  felt  no  uneasiness  until  tea-time, 
when  I  again  looked  and  called  for  them ;  but  not  being 
able  to  see  them,  and  getting  no  response,  I  sent  to  look 
for  them,  but  they  were  not  to  be  found.  I  now  became 
very  anxious,  and  sent  the  girls  to  every  house  in  the 
neighborhood  where  they  might  chance  to  be,  and  finally 
started  myself  in  a  different  direction  to  look  for  them. 
But  I  was  not  successful  in  learning  anything  of  the 
boys,  and  was  returning  to  the  house,  not  a  little  wor- 
ried, but  believing  there  was  still  no  serious  cause  for 
alarm,  when  as  I  was  passing  Mrs.  Kidder's  house — on 
the  other  side  of  tlie  unoccupied  field  referred  to — Miss 
Mary  Kidder  called  to  me  and  asked  whether  I  sup- 
posed the  boys  would  be  likely  to  take  a  ride  with 
strangers.  I  replied  that  they  would  be  very  likely  to 
do  so  if  asked.  She  then  said  she  believed  Walter  and 
Charley  had  gone  away  with  two  men  in  a  wagon  ; 
for  she  heard  them  talking  to  some  men  beyond  the 
bushes,  and  next  saw  them  pass  her  house  in  a  wagon 
with  two  men. 

This  intelligence  greatly  alarmed  me,  and  when  I 
reached  home,  finding  that  the  children  had  not  re- 
turned, I  started  immediately  for  the  Police  Station  in 
the  Town  Hall,  for  the  purpose  of  telegraphing  to  the 
Central  Office  in  the  city,  to  inquire  whether  they  had 
been  brought  into  any  of  the  Station-houses.  Mr.  Wal- 
ter Kidder  joined  me,  and  before  we  arrived  at  the  top 
of  the  hill  on  our  way  towards  the  Main  street,  we  saw 


THE   ABDUCTION.  29 

Walter  in  charge  of  a  man  coming  toward  us.     This 
was  about  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

When  we  joined  them,  I  asked  Walter  where  he  had 
been.  The  child  was  so  much  frightened  that  he  could 
not  reply.  Mr.  Peacock,  with  whom  he  was,  answered 
for  him,  that  he  had  found  him  in  Kensington,  one  of 
the  northern  districts  of  Philadelphia,  on  the  corner  of 
Palmer  and  Richmond  streets. 

I  then  asked  Walter  where  Charley  was.  He  an- 
swered, "  Why,  he  is  all  right;  he  is  in  the  wagon,"  sup- 
posing that  he  himself  was  the  lost  one,  and  not  doubt- 
ing that  Charley  would  be  brought  back.  Mr.  Peacock 
then  said  that  Walter  had  not  spoken  anything  about 
his  brother  on  his  way  home. 

The  case  had  now  assumed  a  very  serious  aspect, 
and  I  was  utterly  at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  do.  That 
Charley  was  lost  was  certain.  Every  effort  to  find  him, 
with  as  little  delay  as  possible,  was  my  first  duty. 

Sending  Walter  home,  Mr.  Kidder  and  I  hastened 
on  to  the  Police  Telegraph  Office,  and  sent  a  message 
to  Philadelphia,  inquiring  whether  a  child  of  Charley's 
description  (briefly  giving  it)  had  been  brought  to  any 
of  the  District  Station-houses.  In  about  half  an  hour 
a  reply  was  received,  that  no  such  child  had  been 
found. 

We  now  turned  toward  home,  after  being  instructed 
to  inquire  for  Captain  Heins  at  the  Central  Police  Sta- 
tion in  Philadelphia.  On  my  way  to  the  station  I 
stopped  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Joseph  W.  Lewis,  my  wife's 
brother,  and  told  the  family  where  I  was  going  and 
what  my  errand  was.  My  nephew,  Frank  D.  Lewis, 
volunteered  to  go  with  me. 


30  CFIARLEY   ROSS. 

It  was  nearly  eleven  o'clock  when  we  reached  the 
Central  Police  Station  at  Fifth  and  Chestnut  streets. 
Capt.  Heins  had  just  gone  home,  and  Detective  Joyce 
was  in  charge  of  the  office  for  the  night.  We  told  our 
story  to  Mr.  Joyce,  who  replied  that  it  seemed  to  him 
like  a  drunken  frolic,  and  that  the  men  would  either 
take  Charley  home,  or  put  him  out  of  the  wagon  where 
he  would  be  picked  up  by  some  of  the  patrolmen  dur- 
ing the  night. 

This  theory  was  not  satisfactory  to  us,  and  we  deter- 
mined to  go  directly  to  Kensington.  First  we  went 
to  the  District  Station-house  nearest  the  spot  where 
Walter  was  found,  and  made  inquiry  of  the  officers  on 
duty.  They  however  had  seen  nothing  of  Charley, 
and  had  heard  nothing  of  the  loss  of  the  children.  Our 
next  inquiry  was  for  Mr.  Peacock's  residence  in  Euston 
Street.  Arousing  him,  we  asked  if  he  had  heard  any- 
thing of  Charley  ;  (I  had  requested  him  to  make  in- 
quiry for  the  missing  boy  after  he  got  home  from  Ger- 
mantown.)  He  said  he  had  learned  nothing,  and 
directed  us  to  the  corner  where  Walter  had  been  put 
out  of  the  wagon. 

After  walking  about  the  district  several  hours,  in- 
quiring at  many  points  and  failing  to  get  any  informa- 
tion, we  concluded  to  return  home.  It  was  now  about 
three  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  street  cars  had 
ceased  running,  and  we  were  unable  to  get  any  one  at 
the  livery  stables  to  send  us  home,  or  even  believe  our 
story.  There  seemed  no  alternaJtive  but  to  walk  ;  the 
distance  is  about  six  miles.  Soon  we  reached  German- 
town  Avenue,  the  most  direct  road  to  our  homes ;  and 
after  walking  about   a   mile,  we  fortunately  found  a 


THE   ABDUCTION.  3 1 

livery  stable  open,  and  procured  conveyance  to  Ger- 
mantown. 

It  was  nearly  five  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  July  2d 
when  we  reached  Washington  Lane.  Nothing  had 
there  been  learned  of  the  object  of  our  search.  I  slept 
none,  had  no  appetite,  was  unnerved,  and  anything  but 
fitted  for  the  day's  work  that  was  before  me. 

At  about  half  past  seven  o'clock  I  awakened  Walter, 
and  refrained  from  saying  anything  to  him  about  his 
adventure  of  the  preceding  day  until  he  had  his  break- 
fast. He  was  pale  and  nervous,  not  having  wholly  re- 
covered from  his  fright.  I  took  him  to  his  Uncle 
Joseph  Lewis's  house,  where  he  was  thoroughly  ques- 
tioned on  the  matter  of  the  carrying  away  of  himself 
and  his  brother  Charley. 

The  story  that  Walter  told  was,  that  two  men  driv- 
ing on  the  Lane  in  a  buggy  had  given  him  and  his 
brother  Charley  candy  on  Saturday,  June  27th;  Mon- 
day, June  29th ;  Tuesday,  June  30th ;  and  Wednesday, 
July  1st;  and  that  Charley  had  asked  them  for  a 
ride,  and  also  whether  they  would  not  buy  him  fire- 
crackers, which  they  promised  to  do.  After  driving  to 
the  top  of  the  hill,  they  turned  around  and  took  them 
into  the  wagon.  Walter  asked  them  to  go  to  the  Main 
street  to  get  the  fire-crackers.  To  this  request  the 
men  said  "  No ;  we  will  take  you  to  Aunt  Susie's,  (a 
fictitio.us  person),  who  keeps  a  store,  and  will  give  you 
a  pocket-full  for  five  cents."  He  said  Charley  was 
placed  on  the  seat  between  the  men,  and  he  sat  on  the 
knee  of  the  one  who  was  not  driving.  He  also  said 
that  the  men  talked  to  them  as  they  drove  along,  but 
said  more  to  Charley  than  to  him  ;  that  they  did  not 


32  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

talk  much  to  each  other;  about  all  he  remembered 
their  saying,  was  that  the  one  on  whose  knee  he  sat 
took  off  his  hat,  and  showing  it  to  his  companion  re- 
marked that  it  was  about  worn  out,  and  he  would  have 
to  get  another  one.  This  man  also  said  to  the  driver 
"Slower,  slower,"  or  "Faster,  faster,"  as  they  were 
ascending  or  descending  a  hill.  The  men  gave  them 
candy  as  they  went  along. 

After  they  had  gone  some  distance,  Charley  began  to 
cry,  and  begged  to  be  taken  home;  he  was  pacified  by 
being  told  they  would  soon  be  at  Aunt  Susie's.  On 
reaching  Palmer  and  Richmond  streets,  Walter  was 
given  twenty-five  cents,  and  directed  to  a  cigar  store 
next  to  the  comer,  where  fire-works  were  displayed  in 
the  window,  and  told  to  get  fire-crackers  for  him- 
self, and  torpedoes  for  Charley.  When  he  reached 
home  he  had  two  packages  of  fire-crackers  and  one 
package  of  small  torpedoes  in  his  hands,  and  four  cents 
in  change  in  his  pocket.  While  Walter  was  in  the 
store  buying  the  crackers  and  torpedoes,  the  men  drove 
off,  taking  Charley  with  them;  and  when  he  came  out 
he  looked  up  and  down  the  street  and  around  the  cor- 
ner, but  could  see  nothing  of  the  horse  and  wagon,  the 
men,  or  his  little  brother.  Finding  himself  deserted, 
he  cried  loudly;  a  crowd  soon  gathered  around  him, 
and  one  of  the  number  was  Mr.  Henry  G.  Peacock,  who 
brought  him  home. 

Walter's  story  of  this  part  of  the  transaction  was 
confirmed  by  a  little  girl  who  saw  the  men  give 
him  the  money  and  direct  him  to  the  cigar  store. 
She  also  saw  them  drive  up  Palmer  street  to  the  first 
small  street  and  turn  the  corner,  and  disappear  in  an 


THE   ABDUCTION.  33 

easterly  direction,  before  Walter  returned.  She  was 
the  first  person  who  attempted  to  pacify  him  when  he 
began  to  cry.  Walter  amongst  other  things  stated  that 
the  men  had  a  bottle  on  the  seat  of  the  wagon,  and  that 
at  two  different  places  they  put  him  out  of  the  wagon 
to  get  some  water;  when  he  handed  them  the  cup,  they 
poured  some  liquor  into  the  water  and  drank. 

After  concluding  our  examination  of  the  boy  on  these 
points,  we  asked  him  what  kind  of  looking  men  they 
were?  The  driver  he  described  as  being  of  medium 
size,  about  my  height  (five  feet  nine  inches),  rather  full 
and  red  in  the  face,  with  red  or  sandy  mustache,  and  no 
beard ;  he  wore  eye-glasses,  and  had  an  open-faced  gold 
watch,  gold  vest  chain  and  green  sleeve  buttons. 

The  other  man  was  older,  taller  and  heavier  than  the 
driver.  He  had  whiskers  about  three  inches  long,  of  a 
red  or  sandy  color,  and  a  nose  which  was  turned  up  or 
in  some  way  deformed;  he  wore  gold-bowed  spectacles, 
and  two  gold  rings  on  one  of  his  middle  fingers — one 
plain,  the  other  set  with  a  red  stone. 

The  horse  was  of  a  medium  size,  of  a  dark  bay  or 
brown  color,  with  a  white  mark  on  his  forehead.  The 
harness  was  old,  and  the  silver  plating  of  the  mount- 
ings pretty  well  worn  off. 

The  wagon  was  a  rather  old  falling-top  buggy, 
painted  a  dark  color,  with  red  stripes  on  the  wheels, 
and  lined  with  blue  cloth.  There  were  two  lap  covers, 
one  torn  and  dirty. 

At  the  time  of  the  abduction  Walter  was  nearly  six 

years  old — having  been  born  Oct.  1 2th,  1 868.    He  was  of 

rather  slight  build,  had  light  brown  hair.     Charley  was 

born  May  4th,  1 870,  and  was  about  four  years  and  two 

2* 


34  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

months  old  when  he  was  stolen.  His  body  and  limbs 
were  straight  and  well-formed;  his  face  round  and  full; 
his  chin  small,  with  a  noticeable  dimple ;  his  hands  very- 
regular  and  prettily  dimpled ;  small,  well-formed  neck ; 
full,  broad  forehead  ;  bright,  dark  brown  eyes,  with  con- 
siderable fullness  over  them  ;  clear,  white  skin ;  healthy 
complexion ;  light  flaxen  hair  of  a  silky  texture,  easily 
curled  in  ringlets  when  extending  to  the  neck  ;  hair 
darker  at  the  roots,  a  slight  cowlick  on  the  left  side 
when  it  was  parted;  very  light  eyebrows.  He  talked 
plainly,  but  was  shy  and  retiring,  and  had  a  habit  of 
putting  his  arm  up  to  his  eyes  when  approached  by 
strangers.  He  had  no  marks  upon  his  person,  except 
those  of  vaccination. 

Charley  was  a  depending,  confiding  child,  and  very 
sensitive ;  a  word  spoken  harshly  to  him  would  cause 
his  eyes  to  fill,  and  the  tears  to  slowly  trickle  down 
his  cheeks.  He  rarely  cried  aloud,  and  as  soon  as  any 
evidence  of  forgiveness  was  manifested,  was  quick  to 
perceive  it,  and  would  hasten  to  be  caressed.  In  con- 
sequence of  his  confiding  disposition,  he  was  the  fa- 
vorite of  his  older  brothers ;  and  nothing  would  please 
them  more  than  to  get  the  consent  of  their  mother  to 
allow  Charley  to  sleep  with  them.  Anything  they 
could  do  to  please  him,  was  readily,  cheerfully  and  lov- 
ingly done.  He  seemed  to  know  and  feel  that  as  soon 
as  they  returned  from  school,  they  would  gladly  join 
with  him  in  any  play  he  desired;  and  generally  he  was 
on  the  lookout  for  them,  when  the  hour  for  their  return 
approached. 

He  had  a  good  constitution,  and  when  taken  away 
was  full  of  flesh  and  in  good  health — never  having  been 
sick  after  he  was  six  months  old. 


THE   ABDUCTION.  35 

Having  obtained  from  my  son  Walter  all  he  could 
tell,  my  nephew  and  I  drove  to  the  Central  Police 
Office  in  the  city,  and  inquired  if  there  was  any  news 
of  the  missing  child.  Nothing  had  been  heard  of  him. 
Detective  Wood  and  several  other  officers  of  this  branch 
of  the  police  department  were  then  informed  of  all  we 
knew  concerning  the  taking  away  of  the  children,  the 
return  of  Walter,  and  the  continued  absence  of  Charley, 
together  with  all  the  facts  which  we  had  obtained  from 
Walter.  Their  impressions  were  that  the  men  had 
taken  the  children  while  under  the  influence  of  Hquor, 
and  after  regaining  their  senses,  were  alarmed  at  what 
they  had  done,  and  were  afraid  to  take  Charley  home, 
but  would  turn  him  adrift  during  the  day.  They  advised 
us  to  go  to  Kensington  and  make  inquiry  for  him. 
Officer  Joyce  volunteered  to  assist  us  in  the  search. 
Permission  was  granted  Mr.  Peacock  by  his  employers 
to  accompany  us. 

Our  first  inquiry  was  at  the  District  Station-house 
where  we  had  inquired  the  previous  night.  We  were 
informed  there  that  nothing  had  been  reported  by  the 
night  patrol,  and  instructions  had  been  given  to  the  day 
officers  to  keep  a  lookout  for  the  child. 

Inquiry  was  then  made  of  the  people  residing  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Palmer  and  Richmond  streets,  to  find 
a  trace  if  possible  of  the  men,  the  horse  and  wagon, 
and  of  the  direction  they  went  after  leaving  Walter  out 
of  the  wagon ;  but  no  one  was  found  who  had  seen 
them,  except  the  little  girl  before  mentioned,  who  saw 
Walter  leave  the  wagon. 

The  proprietor  of  the  store  recollected  that  a  boy 
had  bought  fire-crackers  and    torpedoes  the  previous 


36  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

afternoon;  but  supposing  him  to  be  a  child  belonging 
in  the  neighborhood,  had  not  observed  him  particularly, 
and  did  not  see  the  horse  and  wagon  with  the  occu- 
pants. Officer  Joyce  made  inquiries  of  the  ferry  master 
at  Shackamaxon  Street ;  but  he  did  not  recollect  see- 
ing the  described  party  passing  through  the  gates  of 
the  ferry. 

Baffled  in  all  our  efforts  to  gain  information  where 
we  supposed  we  should  certainly  discover  something 
that  would  aid  us  in  tracing  the  child,  we  left  Mr.  Pea- 
cock with  several  police  officers  to  continue  the  search 
through  the  district,  and  determined  to  drive  home 
over  the  route  usually  taken  in  going  from  Kensington 
to  Washington  Lane,  making  inquiries  at  livery  stables, 
feed  stores,  taverns  and  watering  places,  wherever  we 
supposed  persons  might  have  been  congregated  who 
would  be  likely  to  observe  vehicles  passing,  or  wher- 
ever there  was  a  probability  of  a  horse  and  wagon  be- 
ing hired.  This  we  did,  and  found  no  one  who  had 
seen  the  men  and  children,  or  had  hired  out  a  horse 
and  wagon  of  the  description  on  any  of  the  days  upon 
which  the  men  were  on  Washington  Lane.  We  then 
concluded  that  the  abductors  had  taken  a  different 
route,  and  resolved  after  we  arrived  home  to  get  a  fresh 
horse,  and  take  Walter  with  us  to  point  out  the  roads 
and  streets  the  men  had  driven  over  the  day  before. 

With  Walter  as  our  guide,  we  started  from  Washing- 
ton Lane  about  three  o'clock  the  same  afternoon,  telling 
him  to  point  out  to  us  the  road  taken  by  the  men  on 
the  previous  day.  Following  his  directions,  we  went 
up  Washington  Lane  to  Limekiln  Turnpike,  along  the 
pike  to  a  small  street  leading  to  Church  Lane,  down 


THE   ABDUCTION.  3/ 

Church  Lane  to  Hancock  Street,  down  Hancock  Street 
to  Shoemaker  Lane,  thence  to  Wakefield  Street,  thence 
to  Fisher's  Lane,  thence  to  Broad  Street,  thence  to 
Cayuga  Street  (a  small  street  north  of  the  Reading 
Railroad  Bridge),  thence  to  Old  York  Road,  thence  to 
Germantown  Avenue,  thence  to  Lehigh  Avenue,  thence 
to  Second  Street,  thence  to  Thompson  Street,  thence 
to  Frankford  Road,  thence  to  Girard  Avenue,  thence 
to  Shackamaxon  Street,  thence  to  Richmond  Street, 
thence  to  Palmer  Street,  and  North  along  Palmer  Street 
to  the  place  where  Walter  was  left  by  the  abductors. 

The  route  was  a  tortuous  one,  evidently  selected  for 
the  purpose  of  baffling,  the  abductors  never  supposing 
that  a  child  of  Walter's  age  would  be  able  to  remember 
all    its   twistings   and    turnings.       He   showed    great 
powers  of    observation,   and    although   he   knew   the 
names  of  no  streets  or  roads  after  leaving  the  Limekiln 
Turnpike,  yet  he  had  certain  landmarks  fixed  in  his 
mind,  which  he  recognized  immediately,  and  directed 
our  course  without  a  mistake.     We  tested  his  memory 
at  more  than  one  point,  but  found  him  always  correct. 
Several   more  prominent  objects,  as  a  pump  at  which 
the  men  stopped  to  get  a  drink,  the  different  bridges, 
and  the  Kensington  Water  Works,  were  named  and 
described  before  they  were  in  sight.     The  correctness 
of  the  route  was  further  verified  by  the  statement  of 
different  parties  of  men  who  were  working  on  the  road, 
who  told  us  that  a  little  while  before  six  o'clock  on 
July  1st  they  had  seen  the  wagon,  with   the  two  men 
and  children  in  it,  pass  by.     The  route  was  about  eight 
miles  in  length,  and  that  Walter  should  have  remem- 
bered it  so  accurately  was  very  remarkable,  as  he  had 


38  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

never  been  over  it  before.     We  asked   him   how  he 
knew  the  names  of  the  places,  bridges,  etc.     He  re 
plied  that  he  had  inquired  of  the  men  as  they  passed 
them. 

While  driving  along,  Walter  said  that  the  man  on 
whose  knee  he  sat  had  remarked  that  he  was  a  farmer, 
and  owned  a  lot  of  ground  which  we  would  soon  reach, 
and  when  we  approached  it  he  pointed  it  out  to  us. 
We  inquired   at   the   adjoining   house  for  the  owner. 
His  name  was  given,  with  the  information  that  he  was 
not  at  home.     The  person  of  whom  we  were  making 
inquiries  could  not  say  where  he  was,  but  said  he  had 
been  to  ride    July  ist,  and  did  not  return  until   the 
morning  of  the  2d.     When  pressed  very  closely  where 
he  could  be  found,  we  were  told,  probably  at  a  tavern 
not  far  distant,  as  he  had  been  absent  for  several  days. 
Now  we  concluded  we  certainly  had  some  information 
of  value,  as  circumstances  looked  suspicious,  and  ac- 
corded with  the  theory  that  the  abduction  had  been  ac- 
complished during  a  drunken  frolic.     On  reaching  the 
tavern,  a  boy  told   us  we  would  find  the  object  of  our 
search   in  a  shed,  pointing  to  a  building  which  proved 
to  be  a  cow-shed.     My  nephew  finding  him  led  him 
to  the  wagon,  and  asked  Walter  if  he  had  ever  seen  the 
man  before.     He  replied,  no.     After  questioning  him 
as  to  where  he  had  been,  and  his   answers  being  con- 
firmed by  the  boy  and  a  man  who  were  in  attendance 
at  the  place,  we  were  satisfied  that  he  was  not  guilty  of 
taking  the  children.     (We  tried  to  explain  to  him  why 
he  had  been  disturbed ;  but  he  seemed  not  to  realize 
what  was  said,  and  regarded  it  rather  as  a  joke.) 

Disappointed  in  our  first  day's  efforts  to  discover  any- 


THE   ABDUCTION.  39 

thing,  either  along  the  route  traveled  by  the  abductors, 
or  in  the  neighborhood  where  the  elder  of  the  two 
boys  had  been  abandoned,  shortly  after  five  o'clock 
we  drove  to  the  Central  Station,  and  nothing  having 
been  heard  there,  we  prepared  the  first  advertisement, 
which  appeared  in  the  Public  Ledger  of  the  3d  of 
July,  as  follows : 

Lost,  on  the  first  instant,  a  small  boy  about  four  years  of  age,  light 
complexion,  and  light  curly  hair,  A  suitable  reward  will  be  paid  on  his 
return  to  E.  L.  Joyce,  Central  Station,  corner  of  5th  and  Chestnut  streets. 

The  reason  for  using  officer  Joyce's  name  instead  of 
my  own  in  the  advertisement  was  to  conceal  the  loss 
from  Mrs.  Ross;  for  I  hoped  that  the  child  would  be  re- 
covered before  she  would  hear  of  his  having  been  taken 
away.  Before  leaving  the  Central  Station  for  home, 
arrangements  were  made  to  telegraph  me  in  case  any 
intelligence  was  obtained.  A  storm  soon  came  up ; 
we  stabled  our  horse,  and  returned  home  on  the  seven 
o'clock  train. 

By  this  time  the  news  of  the  loss  became  known  to 
many  of  my  neighbors  and  friends,  and  during  the 
evening  a  number  called  at  my  house  and  expressed 
their  warmest  sympathy,  and  endeavored  to  encourage 
me  with  the  hope  that  the  child  would  certainly  be 
restored  as  soon  as  the  advertisement  appeared.  Their 
opinions  seemed  to  be  that  he  had  been  retained  with 
the  expectation  of  seeing  a  reward  offered  for  restoring 
him.  Many  persons  offered  their  services,  if  required, 
in  any  way  I  might  suggest.  Their  judgment  and 
kind  expressions  of  sympathy  encouraged  me  with  the 
hope  that  the  following  day  would  be  more  favorable 
in  its  results  than  the  preceding  one  had  been. 


40  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

On  the  morning  of  July  3d,  my  nephew  and  I  called 
to  see  Mr.  Samuel  Johnson,  who  had  been  reported  by 
one  of  my  visitors  on  the  previous  evening  as  having 
seen  the  men  give  the  children  candy.  Mr.  Johnson's 
description  of  the  horse  and  wagon  agreed  in  all  essen- 
tial points  with  that  of  Walter.  The  men  impressed 
him  with  the  idea  that  they  were  farmers  ;  but  he  was 
not  near  enough  to  distinguish  their  features. 

We  went  immediately  from  Mr.  Johnson  to  the  Cen- 
tral Station,  where  we  saw  Mayor  Stokely,  District  At- 
torney Wm.  B.  Mann,  Chief  of  Police  Jones,  Alderman 
Carpenter  and  Captain  Heins,  with  a  number  of  detec- 
tives, and  again  related  all  that  was  known  of  the 
abduction  of  the  children,  with  a  description  of  the 
horse  and  wagon  and  men,  as  given  by  Mr.  Johnson 
and  Walter,  together  with  the  route  that  was  taken  to 
reach  the  corner  of  Palmer  and  Richmond  streets. 

While  I  was  conversing  with  the  Mayor  and  others, 
the  Chief  of  Police  requested  my  nephew  to  state  to 
the  Lieutenants  of  Police  of  the  various  Districts  every- 
thing he  knew  about  the  matter.  Shortly  after  I  was 
called  in,  and  asked  if  I  had  any  suggestion  to  offer.  I 
replied  that  I  thought  a  diligent  search  for  the  horse 
and  wagon  should  be  made,  as  I  believed  that  if  they 
could  be  traced  the  mystery  would  be  cleared  up. 
Chief  Jones  immediately  instructed  the  Lieutenants  to 
detail  a  sufficient  number  of  men  in  citizen's  dress  in 
each  district  to  visit  and  examine  every  livery  stable, 
blacksmith  shop,  and  all  other  places  where  there  was 
a  possibility  of  the  horse  being  hired  or  kept,  and  to 
direct  all  their  respective  officers  at  the  next  roll-call  to 
keep  a  strict  watch  on  all  suspicious  persons,  as  well  as 
to  make  inquiries  for  the  child. 


THE   ABDUCTION.  4I 

I  was  then  subjected  to  a  close  questioning  by  the 
detectives,  to  find  out  if  possible  what  motive  could  have 
prompted  the  act.  Inquiry  was  directed  to  the  follow- 
ing, beside  many  other  points : 

First,  Were  there  any  difficulties  in  my  family  rela- 
tions ?  To  this  I  unhesitatingly  answered,  none  what- 
ever. Second,  What  servants  were  now  in  my  employ  ? 
I  gave  the  names,  and  related,  so  far  as  I  was  able,  how 
they  were  obtained,  and  expressed  my  belief  they  were 
not  in  the  conspiracy.  Third,  What  servants,  male 
and  female,  had  been  discharged  from  my  employ? 
The  names  were  given^  and  they  were  subsequently 
traced.  (The  detectives,  after  a  thorough  investigation, 
were  satisfied  that  they  were  not  implicated  in  the  mat- 
ter.) Fourth,  Did  I  suppose  that  any  of  my  creditors 
would  be  likely  to  do  an  act  of  this  kind  ?  To  this 
query  I  emphatically  replied  in  the  negative.  Fifth, 
Had  I  ever  had  a  disagreement  with  any  one,  which 
would  likely  cause  such  an  act  to  be  done  out  of  re- 
vengeful motives  ?  I  declared  that  I  bore  no  ill-will  to 
any  living  person,  and  certainly  knew  of  no  one  who 
had  any  enmity  against  me,  for  I  had  never  given  cause 
for  any  such  feeling.  Sixth,  Had  I  served  on  a  jury 
that  had  convicted  any  one  of  crime  ?  I  answered,  on 
one  case  years  ago.  (The  person  so  convicted  was 
hunted  up  and  cleared  himself  of  any  complicity  in  the 
case.) 

The  detectives  declared  there  must  have  been  some 
motive  for  the  act,  and  were  utterrly  at  a  loss  to  even 
surmise  what  it  could  be.  I  said  I  was  at  as  great  a 
loss  as  they  possibly  could  be;  that  since  the  occur- 
rence I  had  thought  the  matter  over  in  all  its  bearings, 


42  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

and  was  unable  to  divine  any  reason  why  my  child 
should  have  been  stolen. 

After  some  further  conversation,  it  was  suggested  by 
Officer  Joyce  that  I  would  get  an  anonymous  letter  be- 
fore many  days,  revealing  something  in  relation  to  the 
mystery.  This  was  merely  a  guess  on  his  part ;  but  it 
proved  to  be  a  shrewd  one,  and  the  correctness  of  his 
surmise  was  demonstrated  shortly  after. 

In  the  afternoon  Detectives  Wood  and  Joyce,  with 
my  brother  Joseph,  went  over  the  route,  taking  Walter 
for  their  guide.  On  returning,  they  expressed  their  as- 
tonishment at  the  boy's  wonderful  memory  of  localities, 
in  which  all  the  officers  concurred.  They  again  ques- 
tioned the  ferry  master  at  Shackamaxon  street  about 
the  party  crossing  the  river ;  but  he  remained  firm  in 
the  belief  that  they  did  not  go  over  the  river  at  that 
ferry.  In  the  meantime  I  remained  at  the  Central  Sta- 
tion in  conference  with  the  detectives,  especially  with 
Capt.  Heins,  who  plied  me  with  questions,  endeavoring 
to  find  a  motive  for  the  abduction. 

During  the  afternoon  information  was  received 
through  Frances  Ducass^s,  a  man  in  the  employ  of  Mr. 
A.  H.  DeHaven,  that  a  band  of  gipsies,  who  had  been 
encamped  not  far  from  Washington  Lane,  had  broken 
camp,  and  were  then  passing  down  Germantown  Ave- 
nue. Persons  along  the  route  over  which  these  people 
had  traveled,  stated  that  m  one  of  their  wagons  was  a 
child  who  was  crying  bitterly,  and  who  they  suspected 
did  not  belong  to  them.  Measures  were  immediately 
taken  to  institute  a  search  for  them.  Instructions  were 
telegraphed  to  all  the  Police  Stations  for  the  officers  to 
inquire  the  route  taken  by  the  gipsies,  and  to  report  to 


THE   ABDUCTION.  43 

the  Central  Station.  About  ten  o'clock  at  night  it  was 
reported  from  the  Sixteenth  District  that  a  party  of  gip- 
sies were  about  encamping  in  a  wood  in  the  vicinity  of 
Fifty-fifth  and  Walnut  streets. 

On  receipt  of  this  intelligence,  three  officers  with  my 
brother  Joseph  (to  identify  the  child  if  found)  left  the 
Central  Office  for  the  Sixteenth  District  Station-house. 
The  Lieutenant  of  the  Sixteenth  Police  District  joined  in 
the  search  for  the  gipsies,  who,  after  considerable  trou- 
ble, (for  the  night  was  very  dark,)  were  found  encamped 
in  a  secluded  spot.  The  party  consisted  of  two  men 
and  several  women,  some  of  whom  were  quite  young. 
They  had  with  them  a  number  of  fine  horses  and  two 
wagons.  The  men  had  been  fighting,  and  one  of  them 
was  badly  cut  in  the  face.  As  soon  as  the  officers 
reached  the  •  spot,  one  of  the  men  loudly  protested 
against  being  molested,  and  threatened  to  shoot  any 
one  who  should  attempt  to  disturb  his  party;  but  he 
was  soon  convinced  that  the  intruders  in  his  camp  were 
not  to  be  trifled  with.  On  being  questioned,  he  admit- 
ted that  they  had  passed  down  Germantown  Avenue 
during  the  afternoon,  but  declared  that  they  had  no 
small  child  with  them.  Notwithstanding  his  assertion, 
without  further  delay,  a  thorough  search  was  begun. 
The  contents  of  the  wagons  were  overhauled,  chests 
were  opened,  and  their  contents  taken  out  to  see  if  any 
children's  clothing  was  in  them.  Neither  child  nor 
children's  clothing  was  found;  but  the  officers  found  a 
lot  of  stuff,  such  as  laces,  watches  and  pistols,  which 
were  in  all  probability  not  legitimately  obtained.  The 
two  men  were  taken  to  the  Station-house  and  detained 
until  morning;  and  nothing  being  discovered  to  connect 


44  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

them  with  the  stealing  of  the    child,  they  were   dis- 
charged. 

My  nephew  and  I  remained  at  the  Central  Station 
anxiously  awaiting  news  from  the  searching  party.  Part 
of  the  time  we  spent  in  writing  the  second  advcrtisment, 
offering  a  reward  of  three  hundred  dollars  for  the  return 
of  the  child — having  made  arrangements  with  Mr. 
Rufus  Walborn  to  have  Charley  brought  to  his  place 
of  business,  No.  5  North  6th  street,  in  the  event  of  the 
person  who  had  stolen  or  found  the  child  bringing  him 
to  claim  the  reward.  This  advertisement  was  put  in  as 
many  papers  as  possible ;  but  owing  to  the  lateness  of 
the  hour,  some  had  gone  to  press,  and  we  were  not 
able  to  have  it  inserted  in  all  that  appeared  on  the  fol- 
lowing morning,  the  4th  of  July. 

$300  reward  will  be  paid  to  the  person  returning  to  No.  5  North  Sixth 
street,  a  small  boy,  four  years  old,  having  long,  curly  flaxen  hair,  hazel 
eyes,  clear,  light  skin  and  round  face,  dressed  in  a  brown  linen  suit,  with 
short  skirt,  broad-brimmed  straw  hat  and  laced  shoes.  This  child  was 
lost  from  Germantown  on  Wednesday  afternoon  (ist  instant)  between 
four  and  five  o'clock. 

My  name  was  not  put  to  this  advertisement,  for  the 
same  reason  that  it  did  not  appear  in  the  first  one;  viz., 
because  I  did  not  wish  Mrs.  Ross  to  know  that  the 
child  was  lost. 

About  three  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  July, 
we  went  to  get  our  horse  with  the  intention  of  driving 
home,  but  were  unable  to  arouse  any  one  at  the  stable, 
and  were  compelled  to  return  to  the  Station-house,  and 
passed  the  remainder  of  the  night  in  talking  over  the 
mystery  connected  with  the  loss  of  Charley.  About 
four  o'clock  my  nephew  was  persuaded  to  go  home, 


THE   ABDUCTION. 


45 


while  I  remained  in  the  city,  to  be  on  hand  in  the  event 
of  any  one  appearing  at  an  early  hour  with  the  child, 
at  No.  5  North  6th  street. 

Up  to  this  time  it  was  thought  by  all  that  some  one 
might  have  picked  up  the  boy,  and  was  waiting  to  see 
a  reward  offered  before  returning  him.  No  one  had 
any  idea  at  this  time  of  the  real  nature  of  the  abduc- 
tion, and  no  one  was  prepared  for  the  startling  revela- 
tions which  were  soon  afterwards  made  by  the  abductors. 


Nursery  in  Charley's  Home. 


CHAPTER    II. 

THE   FIRST   LETTER    FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS,   AND    bisGIN- 
NING   OF   THE   SEARCH    BY   THE   POLICE. 


JFTER  awaiting  the  result  of  my  advertisement 
at  No.  5  North  Sixth  Street  from  an  early 
hour  of  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  July  until 
about  nine  o'clock,  I  returned  to  the  Central  Police 
Office  dispirited  and  disappointed.  Scarcely  had  I 
reached  there  when  my  brother  Joseph  came  hurriedly 
into  the  room,  in  a  state  of  excitement  fully  warranted 
by  the  missive  he  bore,  exclaiming,  "  I  have  it !  I  have 
it!"  He  held  in  his  hand  a  letter  partially  opened, 
which  he  passed  to  me.  Upon  the  envelope  was  writ- 
ten, in  a  hand  ever  afterward  distinguishable  at  a  glance, 
my  full  name  and  address.  Its  postmark  was  Phila- 
delphia, July  the  3d,  eight  A.  M. 

In  a  moment  all  present  eagerly  gathered  around 
me,  whilst  I  deciphered  the  terrible  communication. 
Captain  Hcins  took  possession  of  the  letter  as  soon  as 
I  had  jead  it,  and  invited  me,  with  a  few  of  my  friends 
and  several  detective  officers,  into  a  private  room.  The 
letter  was  then  read  aloud.  So  overwhelming  was  the 
astonishment  and  indignation  that  for  a  time  every  one 
was  silent.  Then  followed  varied  expressions  of  hor- 
ror, as  each  one  realized  that  there  existed  a  human 
being  capable  of  committing  an  act  so  cruel,  so  full  of 
unspeakable  torment  to   its  victims,  as  that  of  child- 


FIRST    LETTER    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS.  4/ 

Stealing.  The  disguised  writing,  the  evident  effort  at 
bad  speUing,  the  absence  of  any  signature,  and  the  re- 
velation of  the  fact  that  my  child  had  been  taken  away 
for  money,  indicated  that  the  wretch  who  designed  the 
plot  had  carefully  prepared  to  guard  himself  and  his 
vile  accomplices  from  detection.  The  officers  were  of 
the  opinion  that  the  abductors  could  not  withhold  oi 
conceal  the  child  many  days. 

The  first  shock  over,  my  own  feelings  were  those  of 
relief.  The  suspense  of  the  past  three  days  and  nights, 
utterly  blank  and  fruitless  as  they  had  been,  yielding 
no  ray  of  light  upon  the  fate  of  the  child  or  the  motive 
for  his  taking  away,  was  intolerable.  It  is  affirmed  by 
persons  who  have  been  rescued  from  drowning  that,  in 
the  brief  moment  before  loss  of  consciousness,  as  if  by 
a  preternatural  quickening  of  memory,  every  long- 
forgotten  action  of  their  lives  vividly  passed  before  their 
minds.  So  it  seemed  to  me  that  in  these  three  days 
my  imagination  had  conjured  every  possible  as  well  as 
impossible  cause  of  my  son's  absence.  Added  to  this 
was  the  torment  caused  by  the  suspicion  vaguely  hinted, 
and  here  and  there  directly  implied  in  the  questioning 
to  which  I  was  subjected,  that  either  myself  or  persons 
closely  connected  with  me  were  concerned  in  conceal- 
ing the  child.  With  this  oppressive  weight  on  my 
mind,  a  sense  of  relief  was  felt  on  receiving  the  first  in- 
formation that  Charley  was  alive,  and  that  there  was 
some  hope  that  he  would  soon  be  safe  at  home. 

I  was  convinced  that  the  writer  of  the  letter  had  pos- 
session of  Charley,  not  only  because  he  declared  it ; 
but  more  surely  from  the  fact  that  he  gave  correctly 
Charley's  middle  name  "  Brewster,"  a  name  by  which 


48  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

he  was  rarely  called,  but  which  was  known  to  Walter, 
and  was  elicited  from  him  during  the  drive  to  the  city. 
Believing  that  a  fac  simile  of  this,  as  well  as  several 
other  letters,  will  be  of  interest,  they  are  inserted  in  the 
order  in  which  they  were  received,  and  closely  follow- 
ing the  printed  text. 

[No.  I.] 
July  3 — Mr.  Ros  :  be  not  uneasy  you  son  charley  bruster  be  all  wril 
we  is  got  him  and  no  powers  on  earth  can  deliver  out  of  our  hand,  you 
wil  hav  two  pay  us  befor  you  git  him  from  us,  and  pay  us  a  big  cent  to. 
if  you  put  the  cops  hunting  for  him  you  is  only  defeeting  yu  own  end. 
we  is  got  him  put  so  no  living  power  can  gets  him  from  us  a  live,  if 
any  aproch  is  maid  to  his  hidin  place  that  is  the  signil  for  his  instant 
anihilation.  if  you  regard  his  lif  puts  no  one  to  search  for  him  yu  mony 
can  fech  him  out  alive  an  no  other  existin  powers,  dont  deceve  yuself 
an  think  the  detectives  can  git  him  from  us  for  that  is  imposebel.  you 
here  from  us  in  few  day. 

This  letter,  although  indefinite,  was  the  first  clue 
towards  unravelling  the  mystery  of  the  case.  My 
friends  now  persuaded  me  to  take  Walter  to  Atlantic 
City  and  inform  Mrs.  Ross  of  our  loss,  who  up  to  this 
time  had  not  heard  one  word  of  it.  Although  the  fact 
of  Charley's  being  stolen  was  known  to  the  persons 
with  whom  she  was  staying,  they  had  carefully  con- 
cealed it  from  her. 

We  reached  the  cottage  where  she  was  at  about  8 
o'clock  on  the  evening  of  July  4th,  in  the  midst  of  a  fear- 
ful storm  which  continued  until  morning.  One  of  the 
very  first  questions  asked  by  Mrs.  Ross  was  "  Why  did 
you  not  bring  Charley  along  with  you  ?  Is  he  well?" 
We  soon  retired  to  our  room,  and  now  came  the  hard- 
est task  of  all.  I  said  to  her  that  I  had  bad  news  to  tell 
her,  yet  not  so  bad  as  it  might  be;  that  Charley  had 
been  stolen  from  us,  but  we  hoped  to  have  him  again  in 
a  few  days.     She  was  extremely  anxious  to  know  all 


Hr' 


y<.^.    (Purl—     ^  tC —  /WrA     \\AU>«>]^ 
iaaX     W*w-    /tu/^  .  Amxm  0  KjJi 

i4h\  /vy^   <\)t^ 

Fac-Simile  of  the  First  Lf,to:e^  :   ;       , 


/ufij  ^  /l/\\m\M^  COAX  V  ^U^ 

C>aA^  fvV^    KvV^      |xA)'Vvv^      j^jj) 


9    >        >         #  C 


Fac-Simile  of  the  First  Letter. 


FIRST   LETTER   FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  53 

the  circumstances — for  what  object  he  had  been  taken, 
and  if  we  had  heard  anything  of  him.  To  these  ques- 
tions and  many  others,  oft  repeated,  I  gave  the  most 
favorable  answers  possible ;  yet  the  task  was  very,  very 
difficult  and  painful.  The  anguish  of  my  wife  I  could 
not  undertake  to  assuage.  Silence,  as  though  in  the 
chamber  of  death,  seemed  most  fitting.  Tears  afford 
an  outlet  for  grief,  but  with  her  the  fountain  was  dry. 
"  Oh  if  I  could  cry,  I  know  I  should  be  relieved  of  this 
terrible  weight  that  oppresses  me  !"  was  her  frequent 
exclamation.  Yet  in  the  midst  of  this  severe  affliction, 
from  the  first  knowledge  that  her  boy  had  been  taken, 
until  now,  sustained  as  she  believes,  and  no  doubt  has 
been  by  Him  who  will  not  let  a  sparrow  fall  to  the 
ground  without  His  notice,  she  has  attended  to  all  her 
duties  as  a  mother,  ever  hopeful  that  God,  who  per- 
mitted this  inscrutable  affliction,  will  yet  dissipate  the 
dark  cloud,  and  restore  to  her  the  little  one  she  loves 
so  well.  The  publication  of  private  griefs  is  rarely  ad- 
missible ;  but  the  loss  of  our  child  in  so  atrocious  a 
way  has  taken  such  hold  upon  public  sympathy  that 
there  seems  to  be  a  necessity  for  violating  the  sanctity 
of  home,  and  giving  to  the  world  that  which  otherwise 
would  have  been  kept  sacredly  within  our  own  hearts. 
During  the  afternoon  of  July  4th,  my  nephew  and 
Officer  Wood  prepared  an  advertisement  giving  a  fuller 
description  of  Charley,  with  an  account  of  the  taking 
away  of  the  children,  and  offering  a  reward  of  ;^300  for 
the  return  of  Charley  to  my  place  of  business.  No.  304 
Market  street.  This  advertisement  appeared  in  the 
papers  on  Sunday,  July  5th,  and  during  the  following 
week.     They  also  had  printed  a  large  number  of  bills 


54  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

similar  to  the  advertisement,  which  were  posted  in  every 
public  place  in  the  city  and  surrounding  country,  and 
in  New  Jersey.  On  the  seventh  of  July  my  nephew 
took  a  package  of  these  posters  to  New  York,  and  left 
them  with  one  of  the  Inspectors  of  Police  in  that  city. 
The  first  letter  from  the  abductors  opened  to  the 
authorities  a  new  field  for  the  search.  They  at  once 
determined  that  vigorous  efforts  must  be  made  to  ferret 
out  the  perpetrators  of  the  outrage,  which,  by  the  reve- 
lations made  in  the  letter,  showed  that  the  crime  was 
not  only  against  one  family,  but  was  of  such  a  nature 
as  to  menace  the  security  of  every  home  in  the  land. 
The  mayor  of  the  city  instructed  Chief  Jones  and  Capt 
Heins  to  use  every  possible  effort  to  arrest  the  crimi- 
nals and  recover  the  child;  and  if  necessary  employ 
every  man  belonging  to  the  police  and  detective  forces 
to  accomplish  these  objects.  The  lieutenants  of  the 
several  districts  were  directed  to  make  known  to  their 
men  the  facts  of  the  abduction,  and  to  interest  them  in 
the  search  by  appeals  to  their  humanity  as  well  as  to 
their  reputation  as  officers.  While  all  were  required  to 
be  vigilant,  selections  of  the  most  reliable  men  in  citi- 
zen's dress,  and  men  of  families,  were  made  from  each 
police  district  and  put  on  this  special  duty.  They  were 
required  to  search  every  vessel,  steam  and  canal  boat 
on  the  Delaware  and  Schuylkill  rivers;  to  examine 
every  suspicious  place,  public  and  private ;  to  visit  all 
the  ferries  leading  to  New  Jersey ;  to  stop  all  covered 
vehicles  passing  over  the  various  bridges ;  to  question 
keepers  of  toll-gates  in  the  adjoining  counties  and  New 
Jersey ;  to  keep  watch  on  the  railroad  depots  day  and 
night ;  to  look  into  all  barns  and  unoccupied  houses ; 


FIRST   LETTER   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  55 

to  go  through  all  known  haunts  of  the  criminal  classes; 
to  examine  the  houses  of  Italians,  professional  beggars, 
and  all  the  abodes  of  vice;  to  keep  watch  on  every 
person  known  as  a  criminal,  or  to  whom  any  suspicion 
was  attached;  and  to  examine  anew  all  stables  and 
sheds,  both  public  and  private.  At  a  designated  hour  in 
the  evening  they  searched  all  houses  of  ill  repute. 
Soon  followed  an  order  to  visit  and  examine  every 
house,  public  and  private,  throughout  the  whole  city. 
The  labor  performed  was  immense ;  the  whole  ground 
appeared  to  be  covered — the  time  occupied  in  these 
duties  extending  to  the  middle  of  August.  The  officers 
in  the  district  in  which  my  residence  is  located  extended 
their  search  far  beyond  the  city  limits  into  the  adjoin- 
ing counties ;  visiting  every  house,  making  inquiries  of 
the  people,  examining  the  barns,  out-houses,  sheds,  and 
every  place  in  which  a  horse  and  wagon  might  be  kept 
or  concealed.  They  traveled  over  many  miles,  and 
were  often  absent  many  days. 

The  reports  of  the  operations  of  the  police,  as  made  by 
the  various  officers,  are  full — the  detail  of  which,  when 
summed  up,  shows  a  vast  amount  of  work  done,  with  a 
zeal  never  before  known.  The  search  was  not  confined 
to  our  own  State ;  but  officers  were  sent  up  and  down 
on  both  sides  of  the  Delaware  river.  They  stopped  at 
all  the  villages,  examined  the  boats,  and  put  up  bills 
of  advertisement.  In  conjunction  with  the  authorities 
of  Chester,  Pa.,  Wilmington  and  New  Castle  in  the 
State  of  Delaware,  they  searched  all  the  vessels  and 
boats  in  the  river,  and  the  creeks  flowing  into  it.  They 
also  examined  all  houses  in  those  places  that  were 
known  to  be  at  all  disreputable  or  suspicious.     In  the 


56  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

State  of  New  Jersey,  Camden,  Gloucester,  Burlington, 
Riverton,  and  in  fact  all  the  villages  up  to  Trenton, 
were' visited  and  searched,  and  inquiries  of  the  inhabi- 
tants made  for  the  horse  and  wagon,  and  men  answering 
to  the  descriptions.  Several  officers  went  to  Baltimore 
and  Washington,  and  with  the  authorities  of  those  cities 
looked  into  the  vessels  and  boats  lying  at  the  wharves 
and  in  the  docks. 

It  was  supposed  the  child  would  most  probably  be 
concealed  on  a  boat  or  vessel.  Special  care  was  taken 
to  examine  canal  boats ;  officers  followed  the  line  of 
the  canal  as  far  as  Yardleyville,  Pa.,  examining  boats, 
and  making  inquiry  of  the  lock-tenders,  to  find  out  i! 
they  had  observed  a  child  on  any  of  the  boats  passing 
through  the  locks.  At  the  same  time  they  distributed 
and  posted  the  descriptive  hand-bills.  The  small  vil- 
lages scattered  through  the  pines  of  New  Jersey,  in  the 
counties  of  Camden  and  Gloucester,  were  all  visited 
and  examined,  and  thus  publicity  was  given  to  the 
abduction.  I  cannot  better  state  the  feelings  and  the 
operations  of  the  police  force  of  this  city,  than  by  giv- 
ing an  extract  from  one  of  the  reports  of  a  Lieuten- 
ant to  the  Chief  of  Police,  dated  August  1st,  1874: 

"  It  affords  me  great  pleasure  to  be  able  to  testify  to 
the  sincere  interest,  and  active  zeal,  universally  dis- 
played by  the  police  of  this  district,  in  contributing 
their  best  efforts  towards  an  intelligent  solution  of  the 
mysterious  crime.  Every  house  or  locality  in  the  dis- 
trict of  the  least  doubtful  character,  or  to  which  the 
slightest  suspicion  is  attached,  has  been  promptly  and 
thoroughly  searched ;  every  person  of  known  evil  pro- 
pensities has  been  placed  under  strict  surveillance,  and 


FIRST   LETTER   FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  5/ 

every  instance  promising  the  slightest  probable  clue 
has  been  submitted  to  an  early  and  rigid  examination. 
All  coal-yards,  lumber-yards,  sheds,  stalls,  out-hcuses 
and  unoccupied  buildings  of  every  description,  have 
been  carefully  and  thoroughly  examined.  All  railroad 
depots  and  other  centering  points  of  travel  have  re- 
ceived the  closest  attention.  All  vehicles  justifying 
the  slightest  suspicions,  and  especially  all  covered 
wagons,  have  been  stopped  or  subjected  to  the  closest 
scrutiny  and  inspection.  The  police  of  this  district 
have  been,  and  are  still,  faithfully  and  diligently  in- 
quiring, observing,  and  doing  whatever  suggests  itself 
in   the   matter   as   worthy  of  being   done,"    etc.,   etc. 

The  above  extract  indicates  the  active  official  interest 
felt  by  the  whole  police  force  of  the  city.  Similar  re- 
ports are  in  my  possession  from  the  lieutenants  of  every 
district. 

While  no  information  was  obtained  that  resulted  in 
discovering  any  one  connected  with  this  crime,  yet  in  a 
number  of  cases,  while  searching  houses  occupied  by 
criminals,  merchandise  and  other  valuables  were  discov- 
ered, which  led  to  arrests  and  conviction  for  theft  and 
burglary. 

On  the  19th,  20th,  and  22d  of  June,  two  men  had 
hired  at  a  certain  livery  stable  a  team  answering  in  de- 
scription to  the  one  we  were  in  search  of.  On  the  23d 
of  June  they  applied  for  the  same  horse  and  wagon  for 
five  days,  but  failed  to  get  it,  because  the  owner  had 
seen  them  enter  a  public  house  which  he  knew  to  be  a 
resort  for  thieves,  and  suspected  that  they  designed 
engaging  in  some  unlawful  business.  To  the  officers 
visiting  this  house  the  proprietor  refused  to  reveal  who 
3* 


58  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

the  men  were,  or  where  they  could  be  found,  and  not 
until  arrested  himself  did  he  tell  their  names  and  resi- 
dences. On  searching  their  house,  located  on  one  of 
the  most  public  streets  of  the  city,  not  the  men,  but  a 
large  quantity  of  household  goods  and  silver-ware  was 
found,  which  proved  to  have  been  stolen  from  dwellings 
in  Germantown  during  the  days  they  had  the  horse  and 
wagon.  The  men  were  subsequently  arrested,  tried, 
convicted,  and  sentenced  to  imprisonment. 

Every  possible  effort  was  made  by  the  officers  to  trace 
the  horse  and  wagon,  and  particular  attention  was  paid 
to  find  persons  who  had  seen  strangers  driving  on  Wash- 
ington Lane  during  the  last  days  of  June  and  the  first 
of  July. 

A  few  days  after  the  abduction,  information  was  ob- 
tained that  a  number  of  strangers  had  been  stopping  at 
a  hotel  on  the  corner  of  Main  street  and  Washington 
Lane,  Germantown ;  that  they  had  horses  and  wagons, 
some  of  which  answered  the  description  of  those  used 
by  the  abductors,  and  that  they  had  been  seen  repeat- 
edly driving  on  the  Lane.  They  arrived  at  the  hotel 
on  different  days  during  the  month  of  June,  and  were 
acquainted  with  each  other.  They  were  eight  in  num- 
ber, and  had  with  them  four  horses  and  wagons.  On 
further  inquiry  it  was  ascertained  that  a  woman,  with  a 
child  about  four  years  old,  came  to  the  hotel  on  June 
29th,  stating  that  she  expected  to  remain  several  days ; 
but  went  away  on  the  evening  of  July  ist,  sending  her 
baggage  in  one  direction  while  she  went  in  a  different 
one.  An  employee  at  the  hotel  was  invited  to  ride  with 
one  of  the  men,  who  drove  through  Washington  Lane 
and  other  streets  in  Germantown,  and  asked  the  names 


FIRST   LETTER   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  59 

of  property  owners  in  several  instances.  At  first  these 
strangers  seemed  actively  employed  in  attending  to 
business  ;  but  for  a  week  previous  to  July  ist  had  not 
attempted  to  do  anything. 

These  circumstances  taken  together  were  regarded  as 
suspicious,  and  required  investigation.  It  was  discov- 
ered that  the  horses  and  wagons  were  obtained  in  Cam- 
den, N.  J.,  and  had  been  returned.  The  officers  went 
to  Camden,  and  found  the  names  of  all  these  men  on 
the  register  of  the  hotel ;  but  they  had  left  some  days 
previously.  The  writing  was  carefully  compared  with 
the  letters  received  from  the  abductors  up  to  this  time; 
but  there  was  no  resemblance.  This  party  on  leaving 
Camden  had  scattered,  some  having  gone  to  northern 
New  Jersey,  others  to  the  State  of  New  York,  and  the 
rest  to  Ohio.  The  information  was  deemed  sufficient 
to  warrant  the  following  up  of  the  men,  woman  and 
child,  and  a  full  investigation  of  the  matter. 

The  very  evening  before  the  officers  started  to  New 
Jersey,  the  postmaster  in  the  town  in  which  they  ex- 
pected to  find  two  of  the  men,  telegraphed  as  follows : 
"The  Ross  child  here;  send  immediately."  This  tele- 
gram encouraged  the  belief  that  we  were  on  the  right 
track.  The  officers  found  two  of  the  men  at  this  place, 
and  calling  on  the  postmaster,  learned  that  a  man  with  a 
boy  had  applied  for  permission  to  stay  at  the  county 
alms-house,  and  was  denied  admittance;  that  from  the 
description  he  had  of  the  child,  he  believed  him  to  be 
my  child.  He  indicated  the  direction  they  had  taken. 
One  of  the  officers  remained  at  the  hotel  with  the  men, 
while  the  other  two  followed  the  one  with  the  child. 
Traces  of  them  were  soon  found.      On  coming  to  a 


<-0  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

bridge  the  toll  collector  said  the  man  and  child  had 
passed  over  the  bridge  a  few  hours  before.  He  described 
the  boy  as  of  a  dark  complexion,  of  foreign — most  pro- 
bably Italian  origin ;  said  he  spoke  broken  English,  and 
was  about  nine  years  old.  This  description  of  the  boy 
so  exactly  corresponded  with  that  given  by  other  per- 
sons along  the  road,  that  the  officers  were  satisfied  that 
the  child  was  not  the  one  they  were  looking  for,  and 
they  abandoned  the  pursuit.  The  bridge- keeper  had  a 
likeness  of  Charley  in  his  office,  and  said  that  he  was 
looking  out  for  him,  and  that  he  would  not  have  allowed 
the  party  to  pass  over  the  bridge  had  the  child  resembled 
the  lost  one.  It  was  subsequently  ascertained  that  they 
had  no  connection  with  the  suspected  party  the  officers 
were  sent  to  trace.  This  ended  the  matter,  so  far  as 
that  child  was  concerned. 

The  officer  who  had  been  left  behind  entered  into 
conversation  meanwhile  with  the  men  at  the  hotel. 
They  stated  they  had  been  to  Germantown  taking  orders 
for  trees  and  shrubbery,  and  were  agents  for  a  lar^e 
nursery;  that  they  had  stopped  trying  to  get  orders 
about  a  week  before  the  first  of  July  under  instructions 
from  their  employers,  and  because  the  farmers  were  en- 
gaged with  their  harvest,  and  would  not  give  attention 
to  anything  else ;  that  their  object  in  making  inquiries 
about  who  owned  the  properties  on  Washington  Lane 
and  elsewhere,  was  to  find  out  who  were  responsible 
persons,  and  to  whom  they  might  safely  sell.  They 
hired  teams  in  Camden,  N.  J.,  because  they  could  do  so 
at  prices  within  their  allowance  for  expenses,  which  was 
impossible  in  Germantown.  Business  being  dull,  their 
employers  had  written  them  to  go  to  their  homes,  and 


FIRST    LETTER    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS.  6l 

they  accordingly  had  left  Germantown,  and  were  when 
questioned  on  the  way  to  their  several  homes.  Those 
living  in  Ohio  were  found,  also  the  woman  and  child. 
She  proved  to  be  the  wife  of  one  of  the  men,  and  the 
child  was  her  own. 

This  search  was  a  long  one,  based  on  what  were 
thought  very  suspicious  circumstances  when  grouped 
together,  but  satisfactorily  explained  when  everything 
was  known.  The  parties  of  course  disclaimed  any 
criminal  knowledge  of  the  abduction,  and  proved  very 
clearly  that  all  our  suspicions  were  groundless. 

It  was  deemed  important  to  find, 'if  possible,  other 
persons  besides  Walter  and  Mr.  Johnson,  who  had  seen 
the  men  driving  on  the  lane  during  any  of  the  days 
Walter  said  they  had  been  there.  Officer  Wood  and 
my  nephew  were  sent  to  interrogate  every  person  who 
had  been  or  was  then  working  in  the  neighborhood. 
A  number  of  persons  were  found  who  had  seen  a  horse 
and  wagon  with  two  men  driving  on  the  lane,  which  at 
first  they  supposed  were  the  kidnappers  ;  but  subse- 
quently they  satisfied  themselves  that  they  were  the 
"  tree"  men  before  referred  to.  So  nearly  did  they  cor- 
respond to  the  description  we  had  of  the  abductors,  that 
it  was  difficult  to  distinguish  them  from  the  real  abduc- 
tors. They  however  found  Mr.  Buddy,  who  had  been 
working  nearly  opposite  my  residence,  and  who  saw 
the  men  on  the  27th,  29th,  and  30th  of  June,  conversing 
with  the  children  and  giving  them  candy  ;  but  who 
was  not  at  work  July  ist.  They  also  found  Peter  Cal- 
lahan, a  gardener  employed  by  my  next  neighbor,  who 
saw  one  of  the  men  walking  and  holding  a  handker- 
chief to   his  face,  whilst  the  other  sat  in   the  wagon 


62  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

/ 

driving  the  horse.  His  description  of  these  men  was 
somewhat  more  minute ;  but  in  all  essential  particulars 
agreed  with  that  which  we  had  from  Walter. 

The  next  day  my  nephew  and  I  followed  up  the  in- 
quiries, and  drove  along  the  route  taken  by  the  men, 
inquiring  at  every  house,  of  men  working  in  the  fields 
along  the  line  of  the  road,  at  the  toll-gates,  the  places 
where  Walter  said  he  got  out  for  water,  of  the  men  who 
were  working  on  the  road,  and  had  seen  the  men  witli 
the  children  pass ;  in  fact,  of  every  one  from  whom  we 
thought  it  possible  to  gain  any  information  ;  but  failed 
to  find  any  one  who  could  impart  additional  light  on 
the  matter. 

Captain  Heins,  on  July  6th,  with  my  nephew,  drove 
to  Palmer  and  Richmond  streets,  and  taking  the  road 
along  the  Delaware  river,  visited  all  the  villages,  and 
making  a  wide  circuit,  stopped  at  all  the  watering 
places,  blacksmith  shops,  and  hotels,  returning  late  the 
same  night  without  being  able  to  hear  anything  of  the 
parties.  Similar  excursions  were  made  daily,  until  the 
whole  country  within  a  radius  of  ten  to  twelve  miles 
was  thoroughly  canvassed. 


CHAPTER  III. 

LETTERS  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS  AND  INCIDENTS 
CONNECTED  WITH  THE  SEARCH. 

OU  here  from  us  in  few  day."  This,  the  clos- 
ing sentence  of  the  first  letter  received  from 
the  abductors,  awakened  a  most  intense  de- 
sire to  know  what  the  next  would  reveal ;  and  the  hours 
passed  slowly  whilst  waiting  with  trembling  anxiety 
and  painful  unrest,  to  learn  what  was  meant  by  "  You 
wil  have  two  pay  us  befor  you  git  him  from  us,  and 
pay  us  a  big  cent  to." 

The  time  of  waiting  was  not  long.  On  Monday,  July 
6th,  on  my  way  to  Germantown  from  Atlantic  City 
with  Mrs.  Ross  and  the  children,  the  second  letter  was 
handed  me  at  my  place  of  business.  My  brother  had 
read  it,  and  said,  "No  harm  has  come  to  Charley;  but 
;^20,ooo  is  demanded  for  his  ransom."  "  Certainly  you 
have  not  read  rightly,"  I  replied.  On  opening  the  let- 
ter I  too  plainly  saw  the  figures  ;^20,ooo.  I  was  so 
dumfounded  that  I  read  no  more  at  that  time;  but 
joined  my  family  with  a  heavy  heart,  and  went  home 

At  the  first  favorable  opportunity,  as  I  read  the  letter 
over,  many  thoughts  passed  quickly  through  my  mind. 
I  asked  myself,  "  Can  it  be  possible  that  the  life  of  our 
little  boy  is  depending  on  the  payment  of  so  large  a 
sum  of  money?  can  it  be  that  men  are  so  hardened  as 

(63) 


64  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

to  harm,  nay  kill  an  innocent  child  without  cause?  will 
the  cruel  and  cold-blooded  threats  be  executed  ?" 

Although  greatly  distressed,  I  felt  the  necessity  of 
appearing  as  cheerful  as  possible  in  the  presence  of  my 
wife;  and  when  she  desired  to  see  the  letter,  I  told  her  it 
was  better  she  should  not  read  it,  and  endeavored  to  en- 
courage her  with  the  hope  that  it  could  not  be  long  ere 
Charley  would  be  with  us  again. 

It  may  be  well  to  say  here  that  Mrs.  Ross  did  not 
read  any  of  the  letters  until  they  were  published  in  the 
newspapers  of  September  of  the  following  year — except 
one  which  is  milder  in  tone  than  the  others,  and  which 
was  given  her  to  read  by  her  brother.  Everything  they 
contained  was  kept  from  her,  except  those  portions  that 
referred  to  Charley's  health.  This  was  done  to  spare 
her  the  torture  which  the  cruel  threats  would  have 
caused,  and  was  acquiesced  in  by  her  without  any 
questioning. 

The  second  letter  not  only  reveals  the  price  fixed  as 
the  ransom,  but  distinctly  states  that  a  reward  of  five 
times  the  amount  will  not  secure  the  restitution  of  the 
child.  It  sets  at  defiance  the  powers  of  the  universe  to 
discover  the  place  of  his  concealment,  or  that  of  the 
persons  who  stole  him;  repeats  with  cruel  emphasis  the 
threats  of  the  first  letter;  and  prescribes  a  means  of 
communicating  answers  to  the  writer. 

A  fac  simile  of  this  letter  is  also  given,  with  that  of 

an  envelope,  all  of  which  are  similar,  the  address  being 

the  same  and  the  postage  stamp  of  each  placed  on  the 

lower  left-hand  corner. 

[N<..  2.] 
rmi.AnEi.rHiA,  July  6. — Mr.   Kos :     "We  supos  you  got  the  other 
Icter  that  laid  yu  we  had  yu  child  all  saf  and  send. 


W^^<;3aXXx  \vN^  >i^x\>  ^TivSs.  ^irKviV_^ 


\)uirvr\ro^ 


^uvvv_  ?\Art>\v.  \fe^~~  WAvi  Vvw^  Vv/^wv  /yv- 

NV'Syj.^  KTsj    uvpS^'JV    i'^^Y^    ]\N>>\^.  CVJ^  (X^        -     . 

W>  \N>A^^^fo^  /A^1.(^^^V  c>^iv>vjOov .  A  ^Y)O^JL, 
cA^oiL)^  i^3vv^^  c'Vwtvi   (W/^  Ia^  ^aAj::)^  J 

Nv<_    tftAAT-    N^^  .  IV>^     VW^  IVvvM..     (vyv^     Vv-«.AvA^  vv) 

Reduced  Fac-Simile  of  the  Second  Letter. 


kX^J^>^   J)L    \^,rK^  *vv^  (V\v>w    IWmv>*a-v    y»/»^^  ^^^}^ 


Reduced  Fac-Simile  of  the   Second  Letter. 


70  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Yu  mile  ofer  one  ^ioo,cxx)  it  woud  avale  yu  nothing,  to  be  plaen 
with  yu  yu  mite  invok  al  the  powers  of  the  universe  and  that  cold  not 
get  yu  child  from  us.  we  set  god — man  and  devel  at  defiance  to  rest 
him  ot  of  our  hands.  This  is  the  lever  that  moved  the  rock  that  hides 
him  from  yu  ^20,000.  not  one  doler  les — impossible — impossible — 
you  cannot  get  him  without  it.  if  yu  love  money  more  than  child  yu 
be  its  murderer  not  us  for  the  money  we  will  have  if  we  dont  from 
yu  we  be  sure  to  git  it  from  some  one  els  for  we  will  mak  examples  of 
yurc  child  that  others  may  be  wiser.  We  give  yu  al  the  tim  yu  want 
to  consider  wel  wat  yu  be  duing.  Yu  money  or  his  lif  we  wil  hav — 
dont  flater  yu  self  yu  wil  trap  us  under  pretens  of  paying  the  ransom 
that  be  imposible — d'ont  let  the  detectives  mislede  yu  thay  tel  yu  thay 
can  git  him  and  arest  us  to^if  yu  set  the  detectives  in  search  for  him  as 
we  teld  yu  befor  they  only  serch  for  his  lif.  for  if  any  aproch  be  made 
to  his  hidin  place  by  detective  his  lif  wil  be  instant  sacrificed,  you  wil 
see  yu  child  dead  or  alive  if  we  get  yu  money  yu  get  him  live  if  no 
money  yu  get  him  ded.  wen  you  get  ready  to  bisnes  with  us  advertise 
the  folering  in  Ledger  personals  (Ros.  we  be  ready  to  negociate).  we 
look  for  yu  answer  in  Ledger. 

This  letter  was  received  through  the  post-office  on 
the  morning  of  the  sixth  of  July,  is  dated  and  post- 
marked Philadelphia,  and  has  a  three  cent  postage 
stamp  on  the  envelope,  as  have  all  of  them.  The  same 
afternoon  I  took  it  to  the  Central  Police  Office,  for  the 
purpose  of  consulting  with  the  authorities  as  to  what 
was  now  to  be  done. 

I  stated  in  the  first  chapter  that  the  fact  of  the  loss 
of  the  child  was  immediately  communicated  to  them, 
and  no  action  was  taken  by  me  except  by  their  counsel 
and  instructions. 

'  Among  the  persons  present  at  the  reading  of  the 
letter  were  District  Attorney  Wm.  B.  Mann,  and  City 
Solicitor  Charles  H.  T.  CoUis.  Many  comments  were 
made  on  the  letter  and  the  enormity  of  the  crime  ;  but 
all  united  in  expressing  the  belief  that  the  threats 
would  never  be  carried  out,  the  object  sought  by  the 


LETTERS   AND   INCIDENTS.  7 1 

villians  being  money  only ;  and  that  as  soon  as  they 
should  be  satisfied  that  they  could  not  accomplish  this, 
the  child  would  probably  be  left  on  the  street  or  high- 
way, and  thence  find  his  way  home. 

They  all  agreed  that  vigorous  efforts  must  now  be 
made  to  find  the  writer  of  the  letters  and  rescue  the 
child ;  and  decided  to  reply  as  directed  in  the  last  letter 
through  the  personal  columns  of  the  Public   Ledger, 

The  personal  in  reply  to  this  letter  appeared  in  the 
paper  on  the  morning  of  July  7th,  as  follows: 

"  Ros,  we  be  ready  to  negociate." 

Measures  were  at  once  adopted  by  Captain  Heins  to 
trace  the  writer  of  the  letters.  He  instructed  his  men 
to  keep  close  watch  on  all  criminals,  particularly  those 
known  as  confidence  men,  and  detailed  a  number  of 
officers  to  visit  the  hotels  to  find  out  if  any  suspicious 
strangers  were  in  the  city,  and  to  examine  the  registers 
to  see  if  any  signatures  could  be  found  similar  to  the 
writing  in  the  letters  I  had  received.  They  were  en- 
joined to  be  unremitting  and  persevering  in  their 
efforts. 

The  letters  themselves  were  minutely  examined, 
every  expression  and  word  used,  and  the  formation  of 
every  letter  was  carefully  scrutinized. 

While  it  was  believed  that  the  author  of  the  letters 
was  the  real  abductor,  yet  there  was  a  possibility  that 
they  might  have  been  written  for  the  purpose  of  black-* 
mailing  by  some  one  who  was  not  at  all  connected 
with  the  crime ;  and  therefore  everything  that  seemed 
to  bear  on  the  case  was  investigated.  Nothing  of  a 
character  in  the  least  suspicious  was  suffered  to  be 
passed  without  satisfactory  explanation. 


72  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

In  consequence  of  the  general  investigation  by  the 
police  already  in  progress  for  several  days,  numbers  of 
persons  called  at  the  Central  Office,  professing  to  have 
information  ;  some  of  suspicious  persons,  and  others  of 
horses  and  wagons  which  they  thought  answered  the 
published  description.  All  were  heard,  and  whenever 
anything  seeming  to  relate  however  remotely  to  the 
case  was  presented  which  was  suspicious,  it  was  patiently 
and  thoroughly  examined. 

The  personal  given  above  appeared  on  the  morning 
of  July  the  7th  in  the  Public  Ledger.  About  two 
o'clock  of  the  same  day  the  following  reply  was 
received : 

[No.  3.] 
Philadelphia,  July  7.— iWr.i^ox.-  We  sc  yu  anser  in  Leger  the 
question  with  yu  is  be  yu  wilin  to  pay  for  thosand  ponds  for  the  ran- 
som of  yu  child,  without  it  yu  can  never  get  him  alive  if  yu  be  ready 
to  come  to  terms  say  so.  if  not  say  so.  and  we  wil  act  acordinly.  we 
take  yu  anser  either  way  xs  granted  and  wil  act  on  it.  we  care  nothin 
bout  yu  schemin  and  plotin  to  detect  us.  that  is  only  childrens  play  with 
us.  this  thing  is  wel  understod  with  us  and  is  taken  out  of  the  power 
every  humin  l>ein  to  detect  us.  yu  wil  find  it  so  at  the  end  of  this 
hisines.  the  only  answer  we  want  from  yu  now  is,  be  yu  wilin  to  pay 
%2QfXO  to  save  Charley,  if  yu  love  yu  mony  more  than  him  his  blood 
be  upon  yu  and  not  us  fo  wil  show  him  up  to  yu  either  dead  or  a  live  (it  is 
left  with  yu)  anser  the  folering  in  evnin  herald  or  star.  Ros. — ^wil  come 
to  terms.  Ros. — wil  not  come  to  terms,  omit  either  line  yu  pleas 
try  the  experiment,  offer  ;$  100,000  reward  se  if  it  avales  any  thing, 
use  the  detectives  as  yu  pleas  but  dont  let  them  mislede  yu  to  the  sac- 
ytice  of  Charley,  dont  concent  to  any  thing  only  in  good  faith,  we 
wil  act  upon  yu  word,  if  yu  prove  faithles  we  will  prove  to  yu  heart's 
sorow  that  wil  keep  our  word  to  the  very  letter. 

The  expectation  that  something  would  be  revealed 
in  the  letters  by  which  the  child  could  be  traced,  or 
that  a  blunder  would  be  committed  that  would  lead  to 


■m 


LETTERS    AND    INCIDENTS.  73 

the  detection  of  the  writer,  excited  the  greatest  anxiety 
to  receive  them,  and  yet  my  heart  beat  with  misgiving 
when  they  came;  the  cold  chill  of  horror  that  followed 
their  perusal  cannot  be  expressed  in  writing.  There 
appears  in  this  letter  a  fiendish  effort  to  increase  the 
torture  already  inflicted,  by  repeating  again  and  again 
the  cruel  threatenings.  This,  together  with  the  confi- 
dence with  which  the  abductors  speak  of  the  impossi- 
bility to  discover  the  child,  and  the  fearlessness  they 
assumed  in  boasting  of  their  own  security,  well  nigh 
led  me  to  despair,  and  to  dread  the  worst  results. 

About  this  time  it  became  known  to  the  public  that 
anonymous  letters  had  been  received,  and  answers  had 
been  published  in  the  newspapers.  Private  citizens  now 
joined  in  the  search ;  they  went  by  unfrequented  roads, 
as  well  as  the  more  public  highways,  through  woods  and 
swamps;  examined  stone-quarries,  mills  and  factories, 
called  at  houses  and  huts  scattered  through  the  country, 
made  inquiries  of  persons  wherever  they  were  seen,  and 
told  the  story  of  the  abduction.  Wherever  they  went 
the  people  became  interested  and  excited,  and  gave  in- 
formation of  tramps,  gipsies,  and  suspicious  men  and 
women — very  often  exaggerated  reports  ;  but,  neverthe- 
less, the  parties  were  looked  up,  and  forced  to  give  such 
account  of  themselves  as  would  clear  them  of  any  con- 
nection with  this  crime,  which  now  was  rightly  begin- 
ning to  be  regarded  as  committed  against  the  public, 
and  striking  at  the  peace  and  security  of  the  whole  com- 
munity. Many  of  the  searches  made  by  private  citizens 
extended  over  a  large  area  of  country.  They  traveled 
night  and  day,  never  stopping  until  the  object  of  their 
pursuit  had  been  reached.     Thus  was  the  intelligence 


74  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

quickly  carried  to  the  whole  country  surrounding  the 
city. 

When  it  became  known  in  the  city  that  a  large  sum 
of  money  was  demanded  for  the  return  of  the  child, 
and  that  his  life  was  held  as  the  forfeit,  the  greatest  ex- 
citement prevailed;  men  stopped  on  the  streets  and 
talked  over  the  outrage,  denominating  it  the  worst  of- 
fense ever  committed  in  our  country.  Women  were 
afraid  to  permit  their  children  to  go  out  of  their  sight 
It  was  the  subject  of  conversation  in  stores,  in  families, 
and  on  the  cars.  Newspapers  were  eagerly  bought  up 
to  find  out  what  was  the  latest  intelligence.  Vengeance 
was  declared  against  the  abductors,  and  sympathy  ex- 
pressed for  the  child  and  parents.  Many  amateur  detec- 
tives offered  their  services,  both  male  and  female,  ready 
to  go  anywhere,  or  do  anything,  that  would  aid  in  find- 
ing the  child  or  his  abductors. 

Even  criminals  themselves  joined  in  the  general 
clamor  for  the  ferreting  out  of  such  heartless  offenders. 
"  Bad  as  we  are,  and  as  you  know  us  to  be,"  they  said, 
*'  we  would  only  be  too  glad  to  give  information,  if  we 
could,  that  would  lead  to  the  exposure  of  the  perpetra- 
tors of  such  an  unnatural  crime."  The  worst  criminals 
being  apprehensive  of  popular  vengeance,  and  knowing 
they  were  under  close  surveillance,  stood  in  awe,  fear- 
ing that  they  might  be  accused  of  complicity,  or  even 
be  siispected  of  guilty  knowledge  of  the  abduction.  In 
consequence  of  this  dread,  and  the  vigilance  of  the  po- 
lice, the  city  for  months  was  comparatively  free  from 
crime. 

The  letter  carriers  were  instructed  to  keep  memo- 
randa of  the  street  boxes  from  which  they  obtained 


LETTERS    AND    INCIDENTS.  75 

letters  addressed  to  me,  in  order  if  possible  to  fix  the 
locality  where  the  writer  lived.  The  drop  boxes  both 
outside  and  inside  the  Post  Office  were  watched. 
Neither  of  these  plans  resulted  in  discovering  anything: 
The  letters  came  without  interruption. 

Letters  were  now  received  from  other  persons,  some 
anonymous,  and  evidently  disguised.  All  were  com- 
pared by  experts  with  the  letters  from  the  abductors ; 
the  writing  of  blackmailers  or  confidence-men  was  ob- 
tained and  closely  scrutinized ;  in  fact,  every  suggestion 
made  which  was  thought  might  result  in  throwing  light 
on  this  mysterious  correspondence  was  tried ;  but  with- 
out resulting  in  any  practical  good. 

In  June,  about  ten  days  before  the  abduction  took 
place,  three  strangers  arrived  at  one  of  the  large  hotels. 
They  came  at  different  hours,  and  registered  their 
names  as  coming  from  different  places.  They  appeared 
not  to  know  each  other ;  but  very  soon  it  was  discov- 
ered by  an  observing  clerk  of  the  hotel  that  they  were 
acquainted.  His  attention  being  attracted  to  them,  he 
watched  their  movements  both  in  the  hotel  and  on  the 
streets ;  and  satisfying  himself  they  were  about  to  en- 
gage in  some  unlawful  enterprise,  he  sent  for  a  detec- 
tive officer  to  look  after  them.  They  were  followed  and 
Avatched  for  days,  without  the  officer  discovering  any- 
thing criminal  in  their  conduct. 

After  the  abduction,  the  officer  who  had  been  watch- 
ing their  movements  suspected  that  they  were  connected 
with  the  kidnapping,  and  upon  examining  the  hotel 
register  detected  a  similarity  in  the  writing  of  one  of 
them  to  that  of  the  letters  I  had  received,  and  called 
the  attention  of  a  number  of  other  persons  to  it,  who 


y6  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

agreed  that  the  matter  demanded  further  investigation. 
On  inquiry,  he  found  the  men  had  gone  away,  and  the 
only  means  by  which  they  could  be  traced  was  a  copy 
of  an  address  of  a  letter  mailed  by  one  of  the  men, 
which  pointed  to  New  York  as  his  possible  home. 

On  this  supposition  two  detectives  and  my  nephew 
undertook  to  find  him  and  his  companions.  Arriving 
at  New  York  they  obtained  the  assistance  of  a  detective 
officer,  and  after  patient  waiting  and  watching  for  sev- 
eral days  and  nights,  the  man  was  seen  to  enter  the 
house  where  they  hoped  to  find  him.  Information  was 
received  also  while  waiting  in  New  York  that  the  other 
two  men,  who  had  been  in  the  hotel  in  Philadelphia, 
were  in  a  village  in  Pennsylvania.  The  two  officers 
proceeded  at  once  to  Pennsylvania,  found  one  of  the 
men,  and  brought  him  to  Philadelphia.  The  following 
day  the  one  who  resided  in  New  York  left  for  Reading, 
Pa.,  pursued  by  my  nephew.  He  there  received  a  tele- 
gram from  his  companion  in  Philadelphia,  that  he  was 
under  arrest,  and  to  come  on  immediately.  The  next 
train  was  taken.  My  nephew  telegraphed  to  an  officer 
to  be  at  the  depot  on  the  arrival  of  the  train,  where 
the  New  York  man  was  also  arrested.  Both  of  the 
men  were  brought  into  the  presence  of  Walter,  who 
said  he  had  never  seen  them.  They  also  underwent 
a  rigid  examination  by  District  Attorney  Mann  and 
others,  in  which  they  acquitted  themselves  satisfactorily 
of  any  connection  with  the  abduction. 

The  last  letter,  No.  3,  asked  for  an  answer  the  same 
day  it  was  received,  in  the  Ev€7iing  Herald  or  Star^ 
showing  a  desire  to  hasten  the  negotiations.  The  let- 
ter reached  me  too  late  to  reply  in  the  afternoon  papers, 


LETTERS   AND    JNGIDENTS.  7/ 

and  the  following  personal  appeared  in  the  Public  Led- 
ger of  July  8th. 

"  Ros  will  come  to  terms,  to  the  extent  of  his  ability." 

This  personal,  as  well  as  all  others  that  were  after- 
wards published,  except  the  last  two  in  the  N.  Y.  Her- 
ald of  Nov.  15th  and  19th,  was  prepared  by  the  author- 
ities, who  in  the  interests  of  public  justice  had  full  and 
complete  charge  of  the  case.  Everything  was  referred 
to  them,  that  they  might  adopt  whatever  means  they 
thought  best  to  discover  the  writer  of  the  letters,  being 
satisfied  that  if  successful  in  that,  they  would  find  out 
the  abductors  and  recover  the  child. 

To  the  personal  of  the  8th  of  July,  the  following  re- 
ply was  received : 

[No.  4.] 
Philadelphia,  July  9. — Ros.  we  is  set  your  price.  We  ask  no 
more,  we  takes  no  les  we  no  the  extent  yu  bility.  how  mucht 
time  yu  want  to  obtain  this  money,  yu  is  only  in  part  answered  our 
question,  the  only  question  for  yu  to  answer  is  is  u  got  it  and  be  wiiin 
to  pay  it  then  we  wil  proceed  to  bisiness  at  once,  is  it  necessary  to 
repeat  the  fatle  consequences  of  delayin  to  give  time  to  detectives  to  find 
his  hidin  place,  we  teld  yu  it  be  posible  to  find  his  place,  but  imposible 
to  find  him.  no  aproch  can  be  made  to  it  without  a  known  signal 
and  any  stranger  forcibly  comin  to  it  wold  be  the  signal  for  his  instant 
anihilation  were  he  wold  never  be  herd  of.  this  makes  our  party  safe 
and  shows  yu  that  if  it  come  to  extremes  we  wil  spare  not  the  child, 
thus  yu  se  al  the  detectives  in  the  country  could  avale  yu  nothin  only 
Jeopodisin  his  life  Ros  this  undertaken  cost  us  j^iooo  to  prepare  the 
machenery  to  perform  the  work  therefor  consider  wel  befor  yu  consent 
to  pay  it.  for  pay  it  you  have  to  or  sacrifice  yu  child,  we  want  no  other 
anser  but  this  and  on  the  fath  of  yu  word  his  lif  hang.  Ros  i  is  got  it 
and  be  wilin  to  pay  it.     this  anser  or  omition  it  satifies  us. 

In  this  letter  there  is  evidently  a  design  to  impress 
me   that   the    amount    of  money    required    to    restore 


^S  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Charley  was  Jixcd.  Objection  is  made  to  this  part  of 
the  personal,  "  To  the  extent  of  my  ability."  The  cruel 
threats  of  the  previous  letters  are  repeated,  and  the  life 
of  Charley  made  to  depend  on  the  abductors'  personal 
safety.  A  more  powerful  stimulant  to  our  fears  could 
not  have  been  devised. 

They  also  state  the  sum  expended  in  preparing  their 
plans,  showing  that  they  were  pre-arranged,  and  end 
by  dictating  another  personal,  committing  me  to  a  posi- 
tive assertion  that  I  had  the  money  and  was  willing  to 
pay  it. 

The  boldness  which  the  abductors  assumed,  struck 
every  one  conversant  with  the  facts  with  amazement. 
That  three  days  after  the  crime  was  committed,  a  letter 
should  be  received,  announcing  that  the  child  was 
taken  for  a  price,  and  almost  daily  correspondence  be 
kept  up,  defying  the  efforts  of  the  most  acute  to  detect 
the  least  mistake  or  to  get  a  single  trace  of  the  writer, 
was  admitted  by  all  to  be  unparalleled  in  their  experi- 
ence. Efforts,  however,  continued  to  be  unremitting. 
Nothing  was  omitted  that  could  be  devised  to  obtain  a 
starting  point  from  which  to  work;  but  all  efforts 
failed,  and  thus  day  after  day  passed  without  a  ray  of 
light  to  guide  us  amidst  the  impenetrable  darkness. 

The  newspapers  of  this  and  other  cities  made  known 
the  fact  of  the  abduction  very  soon  after  the  loss  of  the 
child,  and  eagerly  sought  for  intelligence  to  be  im- 
parted to  the  public.  While  a  great  deal  was  published 
that  had  a  basis  of  fiict,  yet  much  was  erroneous. 
Their  reports  were  extensively  copied  by  the  papers 
throughout  the  country.  Thus  thousands  of  people 
became  very  soon  acquainted  with  the  abduction. 


LETTERS   AND    INCIDENTS.  79 

In  the  early  part  of  July,  while  two  officers  were 
pursuing  a  band  of  gipsies,  which  they  had  followed 
several  days,  they  were  informed  at  Havre  de  Grace, 
Md.,  that  two  men  and  a  small  boy,  who  was  called 
Charley,  answering  to  the  published  description  of  the 
abductors  and  the  child,  were  traveling  with  a  horse 
and  wagon  through  the  unfrequented  roads,  and  fol- 
lowing the  small  streams,  in  the  direction  of  Baltimore 
The  officers  telegraphed  to  Philadelphia  that  they 
would  follow  them.  About  the  same  time  several 
letters  reached  me,  describing  the  same  men  and 
child,  and  urging  that  they  should  be  pursued.  A 
telegram  was  also  received,  dated  Belle  Air,  Md. — ''A 
child  supposed  to  be  Charley  Ross  passed  through 
here  last  night,  the  detectives  twenty-four  hours  be 
hind." 

The  pursuit  now  became  exciting.  It  was  difficult 
to  follow  the  party,  as  they  avoided  the  public  roads. 
After  the  chase  had  been  kept  up  several  days^  the 
officers  stopping  at  a  factory  were  informed  by  parties 
there  that  they  knew  the  persons ;  that  they  lived  in 
Baltimore  and  were  selling  patent  rights  for  making 
machine  oil,  and  for  that  reason  followed  the  smaller 
streams,  to  visit  the  mills  and  factories  located  on  them. 
The  officers  went  to  Baltimore,  found  them,  and  satis- 
fied themselves  they  were  pursuing  a  legitimate  busi- 
ness, and  that  the  child  belonged  to  one  of  the  men. 
They  again  took  up  the  gipsy  trail,  which  had  been 
abandoned,  to  look  after  what  they  supposed  a  better 
clue.  Whilst  this  pursuit  was  going  on,  great  excite- 
ment prevailed  for  days ;  nothing  was  heard  from  the 
officers,  but  the  painful  suspense  was  at  last  terminatecj 


8o  CHAKLEY    ROSS. 

by  a  telegram,  "  Wrong."  The  gipsies  were  also 
found ;  and  discovering  nothing  to  warrant  any  suspi- 
cion against  them,  the  officers  returned  home  after  an 
absence  of  ten  or  twelve  days. 

Many  reports  were  made  by  persons  residing  in  the 
city,  of  children  whom  they  supposed  were  in  charge  of 
improper  persons,  or  of  others  who  were  believed  not  to 
be  under  the  protection  of  their  lawful  guardians. 
Sometimes  this  was  done  by  one  neighbor  to  gratify 
a  grudge  against  another.  In  other  instances  where  a 
family  had  changed  their  residence  about  the  time  of 
the  abduction,  and  had  a  little  boy  with  light  curly 
hair,  we  were  prett>'  certain  to  hear  of  it.  This  showed 
the  vigilance  and  interest  of  the  whole  people. 

It  was  a  matter  of  much  speculation  as  to  how  the 
exchange  of  the  money  for  the  child  would  be  proposed, 
and  at  the  same  time  how  the  abductors  would  guard 
themselves  against  detection.  There  seemed  to  be  no 
suggestion  that  could  be  made  to  cover  these  points. 
It  was,  however,  said  by  Capt.  Heins  that  the  [x.Tson 
who  conceived  the  plot,  and  who  had  so  skillfully  man- 
aged it,  had  his  way  to  accomplish  that  part  also. 

It  remained  however  for  the  fertile  imagination  of  a 
correspondent  of  one  of  the  newspapers  to  devise  a  plan, 
and  give  it  as  really  the  one  which  was  proposed  by  the 
abductors.  It  has  been  called  the  "  Bridge  Story,"  and 
was  copied  by  the  newspapers  all  over  the  country,  and 
is  as  follows  : 

The  place  selected  by  the  kidnappers  for  these  negotiations  is  a  lonely 
bridge  in  the  extreme  northern  part  of  the  county,  and  the  hour  in  which 
the  business  is  to  be  transacted  is  set  down  at  midnight.  The  bridge  is 
surrounded  on  all  sides  by  a  flat  and  ojien  country,  so  that  one  standing 
upon  its  abutment  could  witness  an  approach  from  any  direction.     The 


LETTERS    AND    INCIDENTS.  8 1 

plan  states  that  Mr.  Ross  must  come  to  this  bridge  with  the  money. 
While  en  route  for  the  designated  point,  and  before  he  arrives  at  it,  he 
will  be  met  by  a  man  who  will  step  before  him  and  say — "Good  evening, 
sir."  To  this  Mr.  Ross  must  render  an  immediate  reply,  and  then  pass 
on  towards  the  bridge.  A  second  man  will  approach  him  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  first,  and  say,  "Mr.  Ross,  how  do  you  do."  To  this  Mr. 
Ross  must  also  render  an  appropriate  reply,  when  he  will  reach  the 
bridge,  and  there  meet  a  third  man,  who  will  ask  the  following  ques- 
tion :  "  Mr.  Ross,  have  you  got  that  ?"  After  Mr.  Ross  has  paid  the 
money  there  will  be  a  slight  delay ;  but  in  a  few  moments  he  is  promised 
that  his  little  one,  Charley,  will  be  delivered  over.  The  robbers  elude 
all  possibility  of  detection  by  the  following  conditions  :  The  three  men 
will  be  armed  and  in  disguise.  If  Mr.  Ross  does  not  come  alone,  or  if 
'a  single  soul  is  seen  lurking  anywhere  in  the  neighborhood,  the  kidnap- 
pers will  fail  to  keep  their  appointment.  The  bridge  stands  all  by  itself, 
three  different  roads  intersect  its  site  ;  and  the  country  being  open  and 
level  as  the  floor,  the  confederates  stationed  out  along  the  different  roads 
can  see  Mr.  Ross  for  a  long  distance  off,  and  know  whether  he  comes 
alone  or  with  some  one  else.  Moreover,  Mr,  Ross  will  be  watched  from 
the  time  he  leaves  the  city  until  the  time  he  is  accosted  by  the  first  man, 
and  any  attempt  to  assemble  a  posse  of  citizens  or  police  near  the  bridge 
will  be  sure  to  be  seen  by  the  kidnappers,  whom,  of  course,  the  police- 
men do  not  know. 

Many  persons  in  our  own  city  called  on  me  and 
offered  suggestions  as  well  as  their  services  to  circum- 
vent this  plan.  They  did  not  stop  to  think  that  there 
is  no  locality  such  as  described,  and  when  asked  where 
they  supposed  the  bridge  to  be,  at  once  saw  that  it  was 
all  a  fiction.  Persons  at  a  distance  wrote  letters  giving 
their  ideas  of  the  manner  in  which  the  parties  could  be 
entrapped,  and  both  money  and  child  recovered.  Some 
of  these  plans  are  original,  but  appeared  ridiculous  to 
those  knowing  the  facts  of  the  case.  A  gentlemen  in 
California  suggested  that  large  logs  be  hollowed  out 
and  fastened  near  or  under  the  bridge,  and  that  on  the 
evening  of  the  day  for  the  exchange  men  of  known 


82  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

courage  be  secreted  in  them,  and  covered  over  with 
brush  and  moss;  that  after  I  had  possession  of  the 
child,  these  emerge  from  their  hiding  places,  attack 
the  party  who  have  the  money  and  compel  them  to 
surrender,  and  thus  recover  it.  He  showed  his  sin- 
cerity by  adding  that  he  would  like  to  come  to  Phila- 
delphia and  be  one  of  the  number  to  engage  in  this 
undertaking,  if  I  would  notify  him  of  the  time  the  pro- 
posed exchange  would  take  place.  Another  gentleman 
proposed  the  following : 

A  sufficient  number  of  tried  men  can  be  brought  into  the  neigh- 
borhood a  week  before  the  time  fixed  for  the  exchange;  perhaps 
in  the  bottom  of  vegetable  carts,  concealed  in  boxes,  and  covered 
up  with  vegetables.  They  must  have  cloaks  the  color  of  the  soil, 
and  make  their  way  in  the  night  by  creeping  across  the  country 
under  the  cloaks  to  a  suitable  rendezvous  near  the  bridge,  where  ihcy 
must  dig  a  cave  capable  of  holding  them  all,  and  find  some  means 
of  disposing  of  the  dirt.  The  hole  must  be  roofed,  and  the  roof 
covered  with  soil,  holes  being  made  for  ventilation  and  ingress, 
covered  with  cloth  the  color  of  the  soil.  They  should  assemble  there 
the  night  before  the  one  appointed,  and  keep  out  of  sight  all  the  next 
day.  On  the  night  chosen  they  should  creep  out  after  dark  alongside 
of  the  roads,  under  their  cloi^ks,  with  wool  on  the  soles  of  their  shoes, 
and  lie  flat  on  the  ground,  having  night  glasses,  etc.,  etc.  By  nightly 
observations  during  the  week,  they  will  have  observed,  without  being 
seen,  the  movements  of  the  confederates.  Their  food  and  water  will  be 
stored  in  the  rendezvous  ;  and  if  they  have  the  patience  and  endurance 
that  every  hunter  has  to  practice  in  creepmg  upon  game,  and  can  hunt 
for  such  a  reward  as  the  friends  of  Ross,  who  are  parents,  can  afibrd  to 
pay,  I  don't  see  what  is  to  prevent  their  capturing  the  man  who  takes 
the  ransom,  and  compelling  him  to  restore  the  money  and  child  under 
fear  of  death.  The  confederates  after  so  much  observation  might  be 
♦.racked  to  their  lairs,  and  some  of  them  would  likely  be  caught  with  the 
principal  offender. 

Another  writes  thus: 

In  this  morning's  Herald  I  read  an  account  of  the  kidnapping  of  little 
Charley  Ross.    Sympathizing  as  I  do  with  the  afflicted  family,  although 


LETTERS    AND    INCIDENTS.  83 

unknown  to  me,  I  presume  to  write  you,  and  to  suggest  that  if  Mr.  Ross 
would  go  to  the  designated  spot  and  get  his  child,  and  if  he  could 
secure  a  pack  of  good  blood-hounds,  they  could  be  put  on  the  track  of 
these  scoundrels  as  late  as  six  hours  after  leaving  the  place.  I  am  a 
Southerner,  and  have  known  this  to  succeed  time  and  again,  when  all 
else  failed.  Should  the  parties  take  to  the  water,  the  hounds  can  be  sent 
up  and  down  the  embankments;  and  after  they  are  once  on  the  trail, they 
(if  good)  will  not  mistake  the  scent.  Being  a  parent,  my  sympathies  are 
very  much  exercised  in  behalf  of  this  sorely  distressed  family. 

Hoping  you  will  be  successful,     I  am  yours.  Southerner, 

These  selections,  from  many  other  letters  that  were 
received,  not  only  show  a  great  desire  that  the  abduc- 
tors be  captured  and  the  child  restored ;  but  a  willing- 
ness to  aid  in  accomplishing  these  results,  by  sugges- 
tions, and  in  some  instances  by  being  active  participants. 

On  the  9th  of  July  the  following  personal  appeared 
in  the  Public  Ledger: 

"  Ros  is  willing.     Have  not  got  it ;  am  doing  my  best  to  raise  it." 

No  answer  was  made  to  this  personal.  In  its  wording 
it  does  not  follow  strictly  the  form ;  and  accordingly,  no 
letter  being  received  in  reply  to  it,  on  the  13th  of  July 
another  was  inserted  in  the  same  paper,  in  the  very 
words  prescribed : 

*•  Ros  is  got  it,  and  is  willing  to  pay  it." 

On  the  same  day  the  following  answer  was  received : 

[No.  5.] 
Philadelphia,  July  13 — I^os :  Yu  say  yu  be  redy  to  comply,  we 
presume  yu  have  wel  considered  be  for  yu  maid  this  promis  we  take  yu 
at  yu  word  and  we  hold  the  lif  of  yu  son  to  the  strictest  performanc  of 
yu  word,  we  want  yu  mony.  yu  want  yu  child,  the  question  between 
us  is  do  yu  mean  to  give  the  mony  or  do  yu  think  by  holdin  out  a  faLs 
promis  to  ensnare  us  into  the  hands  of  the  authority,  i  want  to  explane 
this  mater  to  yu  so  yu  wil  not  deceve  yu  self  for  it  is  imposible  for  the 
wole  detective  force  combind  to  put  even  one  of  us  in  the  power  of  the 
law.     in  transfering  yu  mony  to  us  be  for  yu  get  yu  child  yu  have  got 


84  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

to  rely  entirely  on  our  word,  we  ask  no  more  money,  we  wil  take  no  les. 
if  we  wanted  more  we  wold  ask  it  now.  in  5  ours  after  we  receve  the 
mony  and  find  it  corect,  yu  wil  se  yu  child  home  saf.  Aft  we  gets  the  mony 
we  has  no  further  use  for  the  child,  an  it  is  our  interest  then  to  restor  him 
home  unharmed,  so  that  others  will  rely  on  our  word,  if  we  don't  get  the 
mony  from  yu  the  child's  life  wil  an  shall  be  sacrificed,  consider  wel,  then, 
wat  yu  be  doin,  for  any  promis  yu  mak  us  we  hold  the  life  yu  child  to 
bind  you  to  it.  Ros,  it  would  be  more  satisfact  to  yu  to  give  this  mony 
to  the  detectives  than  us, but  if  we  git  it  yu  git  yu  child — if  not  yu  child 
must  die,  that  we  can  sho  others  that  we  mak  no  threths  wich  we  don't 
kepe.  Ros,  it  is  our  place  to  dictate,  yues  to  comply,  be  you  redy  to 
pay  it  as  we  dictate,  if  so,  have  the  ^20,000  in  United  States  notes,  in 
denomination  not  excedin  "  tens."  have  yu  money  were  yu  can  git  it 
any  moment  wen  cal  for,  the  detectives,  wen  they  read  this,  wil  tel  yu 
they  have  now  got  the  key  that  opens  the  secret,  but  don't  be  misled  by 
them  (we  alone  hold  the  lock  wich  is  yu  child,  if  they  open  the  dor  for  yu 
it  wil  only  revele  his  (ded  body)  if  yu  regard  his  life  let  a  fatherly  love  be 
yu  gide.  Ros,  yu  have  inevitably  got  to  part  with  yu  mony  or  yu  child, 
wich  is  certain  as  death  itself,  any  fals  act  on  yu  part  seals  the  fate  of  yu 
child  an  closes  any  further  bisiness  with  us.  consider  wel,  an  if  these 
terms  agre  with  yu  anser  the  folerin.  Ros,  it  is  redy,  yu  have  my 
word  for  it.     we  look  for  the  answer  in  the  Evenin  Star,  • 

In  this  letter  warning  is  given  in  case  deception  should 
be  practiced  upon  the  abductors.  The  time  of  five  hours 
is  required  after  receiving  the  money,  before  restoring 
the  child.  An  intimation  is  given  that  it  was  the  purpose 
of  the  writer  to  pursue  the  business  of  kidnapping,  and 
that  my  child  must  suffer,  if  I  failed  to  comply  with  the 
demands,  so  that  other  persons  would  be  convinced 
that  the  threats  made  would  be  put  into  execution,  in 
the  event  I  did  not  accede  to  their  terms.  The 
kind  and  denomination  of  money  they  required  is  stated, 
directions  given  that  I  should  have  it  on  hand  at  a  mo- 
ment's notice,  and  the  menace  made  that  if  I  act  falsely 
in  complying  with  any  part  of  the  demands,  the  fate  of 
the  child  will  be  sealed,  and  all  further  negotiations 


LETTERS   AND    INCIDENTS.  8$ 

cease.  It  also  discloses  part  of  the  plan  they  had  ar- 
ranged, to  make  the  exchange  without  exposing  them- 
selves to  detection.  During  the  five  hours  required, 
after  getting  the  money  and  before  delivering  up  the 
child,  they  would  examine  it,  take  him  where  he  could 
be  found,  and  make  their  escape.  By  requiring  the 
money  to  be  in  U.  S.  notes  not  exceeding  ten  dollars, 
they  guarded  themselves  against  being  traced  in  the 
future,  if  the  attempt  were  made  to  exchange  or  pass 
notes  of  larger  amounts. 

The  requirement  that  I  was  to  have  the  money  near 
me  at  all  times,  indicated  that  at  any  moment  I  might 
be  called  upon  for  it.  For  my  protection  Capt.  Heins 
detailed  two  officers  in  citizen's  dress  to  be  near  me 
wherever  I  went  on  the  street ;  to  secrete  themselves  at 
my  place  of  business  and  at  my  home,  during  the  night 
as  well  as  the  day;  so  that  for  about  three  weeks  I  was 
never  unattended.  Every  means  was  made  use  of  to 
arrest  the  person  who  should  make  the  demand  for  the 
money.  Officers  were  also  detailed  to  remain  at  my 
house  constantly,  for  about  three  weeks. 

As  the  plot  was  being  developed,  the  greater  was  my 
anxiety.  I  keenly  realized  the  increasing  danger  to 
which  my  little  Charley  was  exposed;  and  while  I  was 
encouraged  to  hope  that  he  would  not  be  injured  by 
those  who  had  possession  of  him,  yet  the  fact  of  his 
being  forcibly  carried  away  among  strangers  I  feared 
would  seriously  injure  his  health,  even  if  it  should  not 
be  attended  with  danger  to  his  life.  This  served  to 
increase  the  anxiety  of  both  my  wife  and  myself 

As  the  public  knew  that  a  large  sum  of  money  was 
demanded  for  the  restoration  of  the  child,  a  great  curi- 


S6  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

osity  prevailed  to  see  and  read  the  letters.  Many 
acquaintances  and  strangers  desired  to  satisfy  them- 
selves if  the  reports  which  were  current  were  true. 

Newspaper  reporters  of  this  city  and  correspondents 
of  other  cities  were  importunate  to  have  the  letters, 
that  they  might  be  lithographed  and  published.  To  all 
I  stated,  that  they  had  been  read  and  examined  by  all 
who  by  their  counsel  were  assisting  to  discover  the  ab- 
ductors, as  well  as  those  who  were  more  actively  work- 
ing in  the  case ;  and  by  their  advice  as  well  as  by  the 
instructions  of  my  counsel,  I  was  enjoined  not  to  permit 
them  to  be  read,  or  pass  out  of  my  poscssion  for  publi- 
cation ; — the  reasons  for  which  were,  that  no  possible 
good  could  result  by  their  being  read  indiscriminately, 
or  by  allowing  them  to  be  lithographed,  and  great  in- 
jury might  ensue — moreover,  that  there  certainly  would 
be  attempts  made  to  counterfeit  them,  in  which  event  it 
would  be  difficult  to  distinguish  the  genuine  from  the 
false.  Another  and  an  important  reason  for  withhold- 
ing the  letters  from  the  public,  was  my  desire  that  Mrs. 
Ross  should  not  know  of  the  threats  they  contained. 

On  Saturday,  I  ith  of  July,  postal  cards  containing 
an  account  of  the  loss  of  Charley,  with  a  description 
of  him  and  requesting  the  people  to  unite  in  the  search, 
were  sent  to  the  pastors  of  all  the  churches  in  the  city, 
with  a  request  to  read  them  the  following  day  to  their 
congregations.  Another  large  poster  was  prepared, 
giving  fuller  descriptions  than  the  first  one,  and  placed 
in  all  conspicuous  places  in  the  city  and  neighborhood. 

On  July  13th  the  following  note  was  sent  by  the  Chief 
of  Police  to  editors  of  all  the  newspapers  in  the  city  of 
Philadelphia : 


LETTERS    AND    INCIDENTS.  8/ 

Office  of  the  Chief  of  Police,  \ 
Philadelphia,  yu/y  /j,  1874.  J 

Dear  Sir:— In  the  interests  of  public  justice,  I  ask  that  you  will  give 
ordei-s  that  nothing  be  published  in  your  papers  touching  the  case  of 
Mr.  Ross'  child  for  a  few  days.  Yours  Respectfully, 

"  Kennard  H.  Jones,  Chief  of  Police. 

Many  of  the  papers,  in  their  eagerness  to  print  any- 
thing relating  to  the  case,  had  published  the  doings  of 
the  police,  and  thus  informed  the  abductors  of  every 
step  made  in  the  efforts  to  capture  them.  The  most 
injudicious  of  these  publications  was  the  announcement 
that  the  post-office  was  being  watched.  Up  to  this 
time  all  the  letters  had  been  dropped  in  the  boxes  of 
the  main  office,  and  the  day  on  which  it  was  published, 
detectives  were  both  inside  and  outside  of  the  office. 
Immediately  after  its  appearance,  and  while  the  officers 
were  still  on  the  watch,  a  letter  was  dropped  in  a  street 
box,  as  were  all  that  were  subsequently  mailed  in  Phil- 
adelphia. 

I  will  here  relate  a  pleasant  episode  connected  with 
my  sad  narrative.  About  July  13th,  a  gentleman  of 
this  city,  a  stranger  to  me,  to  whom  it  had  become 
known  that  ^20,000  was  demanded  as  a  ransom  for 
Charley,  by  a  note  requested  an  interview  with  me,  to 
which  I  at  once  replied,  that  whenever  it  was  agreeable 
to  him  I  would  be  pleased  to  see  him.  He  called  upon 
me  the  same  day,  and  after  introducing  himself,  added 
that  he  had  sought  this  interview,  not  from  motives  of 
curiosity,  but  because  he  thought  he  might  render  me  a 
service,  if  I  felt  inclined  to  talk  freely  with  him.  He 
then  asked  me  if  I  had  confided  to  any  one  my  pecu- 
niary circumstances,  and  whether  I  had  freely  and  fully 
expressed  my  inmost  feelings  to  any  person  regarding 
the  present  terrible  affliction. 


88  CHARLEY    KOSS. 

I  replied,  "To  no  one  outside  of  my  own  and  my 
wife's  family,  from  whom  nothing  had  been  concealed." 

The  gentleman  then  said  :  "  If  you  will  tell  me  your 
real  condition,  I  may  be  able  to  assist  you."  To  this  I 
unhesitatingly  acceded,  and  told  him  everything  he 
desired  to  know  of  myself  and  the  abduction,  at  the  same 
time  adding  that  as  to  the  taking  away  of  the  children 
and  the  keeping  of  Charley  I  was  absolutely  and  en- 
tirely ignorant,  both  of  the  parties  who  had  done  it  and 
of  their  object,  except  as  it  was  revealed  in  the  letters  I 
had  received — that  to  me  it  was  a  more  perplexing 
mystery  than  it  could  possibly  be  to  any  one  less  inter- 
ested. 

He  replied,  "Do  you  wish  to  pay  the  ransom,  and  run 
the  risk  of  getting  the  child  in  five  hours  ?  If  you  do, 
I  will  give  you  twenty  thousand  dollars,  and  never  ask 
you  to  return  one  cent." 

Such  an  exhibition  of  generosity  and  practical  sym- 
pathy I  was  unprepared  for.  It  overwhelmed  me  for  a 
moment.  On  recovering  myself  I  replied,  "  I  thank 
you,  sir,  I  cannot  accept  your  generous  offer;  for  having 
taken  the  position  that  I  would  not  compound  the  fel- 
ony, I  prefer  continuing  to  make  efforts  to  find  the 
criminals ;  hoping,  if  successful  in  getting  them,  that  I 
will  recover  my  child,  and  probably  prevent  a  repetition 
of  child-stealing  for  a  ransom." 

He  then  asked  me  what  were  Mrs.  Ross's  feelings 
on  the  subject;  to  which  I  replied,  that  I  had  no 
doubt  she  would  make  almost  any  sacrifice  to  get  her 
child  back,  as  any  mother  would  do ;  but  that  she 
also  was  willing  to  endure,  if  her  family  and  friends 
thought  it  best. 


LETTERS    AND    INCIDENTS. 


89 


With  peculiar  pleasure  do  I  recall  this  magnanimous 
act.  In  the  hour  of  my  deepest  darkness,  the  light  of 
such  practical  human  sympathy,  though  bright  in  itself, 
was  doubly  so  because  of  the  deepened  shadows  which 
suspicion  had  thrown  over  the  cruel  facts.  In  the  deep 
depravity  and  selfishness  of  wicked  men,  my  child  was 
stolen ;  in  the  kindly  sympathy  of  a  stranger  was  found 
a  heart  large  enough,  and  a  hand  generous  enough, 
Voluntarily  to  meet  the  utmost  demands.  Great  exi- 
gencies bring  out  great  virtues.  This  great  crime  thus 
brought  out  this  generous  offer. 


Swing  in  Charley's  Play-Ground. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN   THE   CASE — REWARD   OFFERED. 

jHILDREN  never  seemed  half  so  precious  as 
now.  A  new  cause  of  anxiety  and  a  new  ap- 
prehension was  carried  by  men  to  their  daily 
business.  A  new  reason  for  thankfulness  was  found 
that  the  kidnapper  had  not  invaded  the  family  circle 
during  their  absence.  Men  awoke  to  the  existence  of 
a  danger  to  which  their  children  were  exposed,  of 
which  before  they  had  had  no  suspicions,  and  to  the 
grateful  acknowledgment  of  a  protecting  Providence  in 
a  direction  in  which  before  they  had  no  fears.  This 
trepidation  of  families  was  manifested  in  that,  if  a  child 
was  absent  from  home  for  only  a  few  hours,  the  par- 
ents became  agitated  and  anxious,  fearing  that  kidnap- 
pers had  dragged  it  off.  Instances  were  reported  in 
the  newspapers  almost  daily  of  children  supposed  to 
have  been  stolen,  but  who  were  soon  discovered,  hav- 
ing strayed  away.  Mendicants  were  closely  watched, 
lest  they  should  entice  or  carry  off  a  child.  So  great 
was  the  alarm  that  every  possible  precaution  was  taken 
by  parents  to  protect  their  children  from  being  kid- 
napped. Even  little  children  themselves  realized  the 
danger  to  which  they  were  exposed,  and  would  shud- 
der and  cry  out  with  alarm  upon  the  approach  of  sus- 
picious-looking   persons,  who    they  supposed    might 

carry  them  away. 

(90) 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  9 1 

In  consequence  of  this  general  interest  felt  by  the 
public,  and  the  great  enormity  of  the  crime,  a  number 
of  gentlemen,  well  known  as  persons  of  good  judgment 
and  high  social  standing,  conferred  together  and  deter- 
mined to  render  what  services  they  could  in  trying  to 
unravel  the  mystery  which  surrounded  the  case.  Among 
others  were  Mr.  George  W.  Harrison,  President  of  the 
Board  of  Public  Charities,  Mr.  John  C.  Bullitt,  and  Mr. 
Wm.  McKean,  editor  of  the  Public  Ledger.  To  these  gen- 
tlemen every  thing  connected  with  the  abduction  was 
made  known.  The  letters  from  the  abductors,  as  well 
as  all  other  letters  that  had  been  received,  were  submit- 
ted to  them  for  examination.  They  were  informed  of 
all  the  means  that  had  been  used  to  discover  the  men, 
horse  and  v/agon «  in  fact  a  complete  account  was  given 
to  them  of  all  that  had  been  done  by  the  authorities  and 
by  private  individuals,  who  had  been  interested  in  the 
case  from  the  ist  day  of  July. 

Before  these  gentlemen  engaged  in  the  investigation 
of  the  case,  by  request  of  Mr.  Bullitt  and  Mr.  McKean, 
I  met  them,  and  underwent  a  most  searching  examina- 
tion with  regard  to  my  private,  social  and  business  life. 
Without  any  reservation  upon  my  part,  they  were  made 
acquainted  with  every  thing  they  desired  to  know ;  the 
object  of  this  examination  being,  as  I  understood  it,  to 
discover  if  there  could  be  any  other  motive  for  the 
abduction  than  that  of  extorting  money. 

Immediately  after  my  interview  with  them,  they 
began  to  examine  into  everything  that  seemed  either 
remotely  or  more  directly  to  bear  on  the  case.  They 
were  "instant  in  season  and  out  of  season" — ready  at 
all  times,  night  or  day,  to  give  advice,  or  make  sugges- 


92  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

tions  as  to  what  should  be  done,  and  often  went  to  dis- 
tant places  to  investigate  matters  requiring  examination. 
There  was  no  plan  of  any  importance  adopted  without 
their  judgment  and  approval,  and  whatever  measures 
they  proposed  were  carried  out 

Nearly  two  weeks  had  now  elapsed  since  Charley 
was  stolen,  and  the  entire  community  became  impatient 
because  nothing  had  been  discovered  that  seemed  to 
shed  any  light  on  the  dark  mystery.  Many  persons 
began  to  find  fault  with  the  police,  and  censured  them 
for  not  finding  the  criminals  and  the  child,  charging 
them  with  being  mercenary;  others, because  every  effort 
thus  far  had  proved  fruitless,  began  to  whisper  that  if 
the  police  wanted  to  be  successful,  they  should  look 
nearer  to  the  home  of  the  child ;  intimating  that  the 
parents  had  in  some  way  connived  at  the  secretion  of 
the  child,  and  that  they  would  prove  the  real  abductors. 
It  was  whispered  that  Charley  was  not  the  child  of 
my  wife,  and  many  other  like  unkind  and  false  state- 
ments passed  from  one  to  another.  But  our  one  great 
trouble  made  these  lesser  trials  seem  trivial. 

Few  persons  were  prepared  to  believe  that  a  child 
could  or  would  be  stolen  in  this  country  for  the  sole 
object  of  a  ransom.  The  crime  was  so  atrocious  that 
they  could  not  realize  that  the  helplessness  and  inno- 
cence of  childhood  would  be  taken  advantage  of  to 
rend  the  heart-strings  of  parents  for  the  sake  of  gain, 
and  this  too  as  a  traffic ;  hence  everybody  cast  about 
to  find  some  other  motive  for  the  act 

These  whisperings  and  insinuations  were  collected, 
and  furnished  the  correspondent  of  a  newspaper  with 
matter  for  a  long  letter;  which  letter,  however,  was  not 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  93 

published  until  every  effort  was  made  and  inducement 
held  out  to  the  authorities  and  myself  to  furnish  the 
same  paper  with  the  letters  which  had  been  received 
from  the  abductors  for  publication.  After  the  corre- 
spondent's letter  appeared,  it  was  copied  extensively 
throughout  the  country,  and  increased  incalculably  the 
torment  which  we  were  then  enduring. 

In  addition  to  .this,  letters  were  sent  from  various 
places  to  the  Mayor  and  Chief  of  Police,  extracts  from 
a  few  of  which  are  here  given  as  specimens. 

One  person  suggests  that  the  Mayor  should  send  a 
large  force  of  men  to  dig  up  the  grounds  around  my 
house  to  the  depth  of  one  or  two  feet,  and  believes  they 
will  find  the  child. 

Another  writes  thus : 

Chief  of  Police. — Has  it  ever  occurred  to  you  that  the  Ross  boy  was 
stolen  by  his  own  father?  Signed,  ;^20,ooo. 

A  person  writes  the  Mayor : 

W.  S.  Stokley. — Sir  :  I  am  under  the  impression  that  if  you  will 
send  sufficient  force  and  thoroughly  search  the  house  of  Mr.  Ross,  that 
you  will  find  the  child,  Chas.  B.  Ross,  concealed  in  one  of  the  rooms  of 
the  house  in  charge  of  a  lady.  "  Do  not  delay."  If  the  child  is  found 
I  will  call  for  a  reward.  Signed,  

Another  from  the  far  South  writes : 

Mayor  of  Philadelphia. — Dear  Sir:  I  have  a  peculiar  opinion 
that  may  assist  your  detectives  in  finding  the  child  and  thief.  If  my  views 
lead  to  the  discovery  I  shall  rely  on  you  for  a  sufficient  reward.  I  believe 
that  Ross  (the  father)  is  the  villain,  with  one  accomplice;  that  his  accom- 
plice captured  the  child  and  conveyed  him  to  an  appointed  place.  The 
motive — a  desire  to  levy  blackmail  from  his  friends  and  the  city.  Ross 
I  do  not  know.  He  may  stand  well;  but  I  believe  if  you  will  secretly 
look  to  him  for  his  child,  it  will  be  found  in  his  control,  and  he  will 
prove  the  villain,  with  an  accomplice.  If  he  does  not  know  all  about  the 
child,  how  can  he  express  confidence  in  its  good  treatment  and  safety  ? 
How  unnatural  that  a  father  whose  child  had  been  kidnapped  could 
express  confidence  in  the  humane  action  of  the  kidnappers. 


94  CHAKLEV    KOSS. 

Ross  is  the  only  one  who  seems  able  to  suggest  a  method  for  deliver- 
ing the  ransom  and  receiving  the  child.  This  plan  gives  him  complete 
control  of  the  funds,  and  enables  him  to  appropriate  them  at  pleasure. 

I  may  be  wrong  in  my  suspicions,  and  would  be  far  from  doing  vio- 
lence to  the  reputation  of  an  honest  man,  or  injuring  the  wounded  feel- 
ings of  an  outraged  father ;  still  the  conviction  rests  upon  my  mind  that 
Ross  has  planned  and  managed  the  whole  affair,  in  conjunction  with  an 
accomplice ;  that  he  knows  where  the  child  is  and  controls  him,  and 
that  the  stupendous  scheme  of  villainy  was  begotten  by  him  for  the  pur- 
pose of  making  money.  I  know  my  convictions  may  seem  unnatural  at 
first;  but  read  all  the  reports,  and  see  whether  they  do  not  point  more 
directly  to  Ross  than  any  other  character,  and  put  your  detectives  quietly 
to  examine  his  skirts.  Signed,  

Dated  July  ijih,  1874, 

Whether  prompted  by  malice,  love  of  gossip,  or  the 
hope  of  reward,  these  slanders  continued  to  be  repeated, 
until  in  September  a  letter  appeared  in  a  newspaper  in 
our  State,  purporting  to  be  based  on  information  ob- 
tained from  a  person  from  Germantown,  which  was  so 
flagrant  a  violation  of  truth,  that  my  friends  advised  and 
insisted  that  my  family  must  be  defended  by  an  appeal 
to  the  courts. 

Suit  for  libel  was  instituted  against  the  proprietors 
of  this  paper.  They  acknowledged  the  falsity  of  the 
statements,  and  confessed  that  great  injury  had  been 
done  to  us.  After  being  reprimanded  by  the  Judge  for 
the  gross  abuse  of  the  liberty  of  the  press,  and  a  fine  of 
^1,000  being  imposed,  they  were  discharged.  This 
ended  the  further  publication  of  reports  that  endeavored 
to  connect  my  family  or  myself  with  the  commission 
of  the  crime. 

The  following  personal  appeared  in  the  Public  Ledger 
of  July  14th,  in  answer  to  letter  No.  5  : 

"  Ros,  Came  too  late  for  Evening  Star,  It  is  redy :  you  have  my 
word  for  it." 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE   CASE.  95 

Not  getting  a  reply  to  the  above  as  promptly  as  we 
had  to  the  previous  personals,  the  following  was  put  in 
the  personal  column  of  the  Ledger^  July  15th  : 

"  Ros,  am  anxiously  awaiting  an  answer." 

It  should  be  understood  that  the  extraordinary  ex- 
citement in  which  we  were  then  living  was  so  great  that 
the  time  intervening  between  the  appearance  of  the 
personals  and  the  receipt  of  answers,  made  hours  seem 
hke  days. 

On  the  l6th  of  July  the  following  reply  was  received: 

[No.  7.  Dropped  in  letter-box  on  Delaware  avenue,  somewhere  south 
of  Spruce  street.] 

Philadelphia,  July  16 — Kos:  The  reason  we  did  not  respond  to  yu 
answer  was  we  had  to  go  a  bit  out  in  the  country  an  the  blasted  old 
orse  give  out  so  we  could  not  get  back  in  time.  We  went  as  much  as 
anything  to  se  how  Charley  was.  Yu  have  our  word  that  he  is  yet 
safe — in  health  an  no  harm  done  him  thoug  he  is  uneasy  to  get  home 
with  Walter,  he  is  afraid  he  won't  get  home  in  time  to  go  to  Atlantic 
City  with  his  mother  when  Saly  comes  back.  Ros,  yu  understand  the 
condition  the  money  was  to  be  given  us.  We  wold  gladly  give  yu 
Charley  befor  we  got  the  mony  but  that  wold  be  imposible  under  the 
existing  circumstances.  Yu  must  satisfy  yuself  that  yu  wil  git  him 
after  we  git  the  mony  an  find  it  corect  and  no  sly  marks  put  on  the 
notes.  We  told  yu  we  wold  place  him  in  yu  hands  in  5  ours  after  we 
fond  the  mony  corect  but  that  we  can  not  do  but  our  word  for  it  that  yu 
shall  have  him  insid  of  10  ours  an  may  our  blasted  sols  be  eternaly 
darned  if  we  do  not  keep  our  word  with  yu — as  we  said  befor  after  we 
gits  the  mony  we  have  no  further  use  for  the  child  but  we  have  a  big 
object  in  restoring  him  to  yu  safe  and  sound.  We  shall  be  redy  we  think 
by  Saturday  to  efect  a  change  with  yu  (the  child  for  the  mony^.  Ros — 
we  want  to  impres  upon  yu  mind  the  grate  danger  in  efecting  this  change 
— the  danger  lies  intirely  with  yuself  if  yu  wish  to  make  a  change  an 
absolute  certainty  yu  must  comply  in  every  particular  as  we  instruct  yu 
then  a  failure  is  imposible.  the  first  place,  yu  must  not  let  the  detect- 
ives no  how  yu  are  to  setle  this  bisiness  (not  that  we  fear  them  at  all)  in 
aresting  one  of  us  for  as  we  told   yu  that  is  imposible — but  they  wil 


96  CHAKLi:V    KOSS. 

secretly  interfear  in  this  bisiness  in  some  underhanded  way  to  prevent  the 
mony  from  findin  its  way  to  us — we  are  going  to  deal  with  yu  alone  an 
yu  only,  an  if  yu  call  in  any  others  to  give  you  a  counter  advice  from  ours 
then  yu  mistake  wil  be  yu  own  misfortune.  let  yu  friends  advise  yu 
and  not  the  detectives  they  study  their  own  iitterest  an  the  interest  of 
society,  yu  have  a  duty  to  perform  to  yusclf  that  stands  paramount  to  all 
else  in  the  world  an  if  yu  ever  expect  to  regain  yu  child  a  live,  yu  alone 
with  the  advice  of  yu  fripnds  must  perform  it.  we  wil  give  you  this  much 
incite  into  our  bisiness — that  if  any  arest  is  made  it  wil  be  an  inocent 
person  who  wil  be  ignorant  of  the  part  he  is  actin.  but  it  is  imaterial  with 
us  wether  it  be  an  inocent  person  or  one  of  our  own  party  the  moment 
any  arest  is  made  or  any  clandestine  movements  in  transmiting  this 
mony  to  us  it  will  be  conclusive  evidence  with  us  that  yu  have  broken  yu 
faith  with  us  an  that  our  we  pledge  our  selves  befor  all  the  gods  in  the 
universe  if  there  be  an  god  exist  that  yu  child  shal  die  an  we  wil  give  yu 
an  oculd  prof  of  it  an  then  all  further  business  with  us  ceases,  (yu  have 
answered  al  that  is  necesary  at  present,  we  have  yu  word  for  it.)  we 
want  yu  to  nail  this  mony  up  in  a  smal  strong  ruf  box  an  have  it  were 
yu  can  git  it  at  a  minutes  notice,     mark  on  it  (Drugs  for  H  H  H. 

This  letter  intimates  that  Charley  is  not  with  the 
writer,  and  that  he  and  his  confederates  have  taken  a 
trip  to  see  him.  It  says  that  Charley  wants  to  come 
home  to  Walter,  and  that  he  is  afraid  that  he  will  not 
get  home  in  time  to  go  to  Atlantic  City  to  be  with  his 
mother  when  Saly  (should  be  Sophy)  comes  back.  It 
guards  against  any  private  marks  being  put  on  the 
money,  and  extends  the  time  from  five  to  ten  hours 
before  returning  the  child  after  they  receive  the  money. 
By  blasphemies  it  endeavors  to  confirm  their  promises, 
and  to  impress  me  with  the  great  danger  of  attempting 
to  deceive  them.  It  fixes  the  day  for  the  exchange,  and 
endeavors  to  induce  me  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  the 
detectives  ;  saying  that  the  business  will  be  closed  with 
me  alone,  and  threatens  to  kill  the  child  should  any 
attempt  be  made  to  arrest  the  person  who  may  come 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  9/ 

for  the  money.  It  also  states  how  the  money  should 
be  put  up,  that  it  may  be  ready  at  a  moment's  notice 
when  called  for. 

Matters  now  seemed  to  be  drawing  to  a  close.  Ever>' 
advantage  that  the  circumstances  gave  to  the  abductors 
seemed  to  have  been  considered,  and  was  brought  out 
prominently  in  the  letters,  to  intimidate  me  and  prevent 
deception  upon  my  part,  and  to  protect  themselves 
against  detection. 

The  time  appointed  for  the  exchange  was  the  follow- 
ing Saturday.  The  correspondence  was  closed,  no  an- 
swer being  required  to  this  letter. 

The  three  intervening  days  were  spent  in  nervous 
anxiety.  This  feeling  was  participated  in  by  every  one 
who  knew  the  contents  of  the  letter;  and  every  precau- 
tion was  devised  by  the  authorities  and  their  counselors 
to  frustrate  the  plans  of  the  abductors,  and  to  follow  the 
person  who  should  call  for  the  box,  and  arrest  the  par- 
ties with  whom  he  should  afterwards  communicate. 

I  felt  that  it  was  a  fearful  risk,  involving  the  life  of 
the  child,  and  in  painful  agony  the  hours  were  passed. 
The  terrible  threats,  enforced  by  the  dreadful  blasphe- 
mies, caused  me  to  feel  that  the  life  of  our  little  boy 
was  hanging  by  a  single  hair. 

Savages  before  despatching  their  enemies  frequently 
torture  them  by  tearing  the  flesh  piece-meal  from  the 
quivering  limbs  of  their  victims;  but  these  men  remorse- 
lessly, in  the  hope  of  gain,  increased  by  every  stroke  of 
the  pen  the  torture  which  they  had  already  inflicted; 
not  upon  enemies,  but  upon  those  who  had  never  injured 
them,  and  were  not  even  known  to  them. 

My  friends  endeavored  to  convince  me  that  the  terri- 
5 


98  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

ble  crime  of  murder  would  not  be  added  to  that  already 
committed,  for  the  reason  that  it  was  to  the  interest  of 
the  abductors  to  protect  the  child,  as  on  his  life  was 
based  their  only  hope  of  getting  the  ransom. 

Saturday  came  and  passed  away  without  any  demand 
being  made  for  the  box ;  but  the  following  letter  was 
received : 

[No.  8.] 

Philadelphia,  July  18. — Ros  :  we  be  at  a  los  to  understand  yua  week 
ago  yu  sed  yu  had  the  amont  an  was  wilin  to  pay  it  the  editorials  seme 
to  speak  as  if  the  mony  wus  yet  to  be  contributed  befor  yu  could  pay 
it.  this  wold  be  a  tcrable  mistake  for  yu  to  have  it  caled  for  an  yu  had 
it  not  to  hand  out  for  it  wold  never  be  solicited  the  second  time,  if  yu 
mean  square  bsiness  with  us  we  wil  do  al  we  promis  yu.  if  yu  mean 
stratigem  it  is  imaterial  wether  yu  hav  the  mony  or  not  yu  can  try  the  game 
as  wel  without  the  mony  as  with  it.  if  yu  trap  any  one  it  wil  be  some  one 
we  care  nothin  abot  only  we  lose  the  mony  (yu  lose  the  child)  we  be 
redy  to  test  it  soon  as  you  say  mony  is  redy.  we  se  the  pealers  has  coped 
a  lad  an  grate  prase  is  given  them  for  their  efficiency  hut  we  care  nothin 
for  him  but  if  it  was  one  of  our  chums  they  had,  yu  child  wold  have  dide 
within  aa  our  after  it,  an  al  further  negotiations  wold  cease  at  once,  yu 
wil  find  in  the  end  that  the  cops  can  do  nothn  for  yu  in  this  case,  thay 
are  as  far  of  the  track  now  as  the  day  they  started  in  persuit  of  the  game, 
we  cautioned  yu  against  setin  the  pealers  or  cops  as  som  here  cal  them 
lookin  for  the  chilld.  don't  yu  believe  us  when  we  tel  yu  that  they  only 
search  for  the  child's  life.  The  blasted  editorials  have  got  the  city  in 
such  a  feve  bout  the  child  that  we  can  hardly  do  anything,  i  tel  yu  they 
endanger  the  child's  life  at  every  stroke  of  the  pen.  one  editor  wants  to 
kno  why  we  dont  give  yu  some  prof  tlLit  we  ever  had  the  child  by  sendin 
some  of  his  close  or  a  lock  of  hair  we  have  our  reason  for  not  sending 
them,  to  satisfy  yu  we  have  him  yu  remember  his  striped  stockins  are 
darned  in  two  or  three  places  were  they  had  holes  in.  ask  Walter  if  we 
tlid  not  put  the  blanket  up  in  front  of  him  an  Charley  in  behind  to  hide 
them,  ask  Walter  if  we  did  not  say  we  wold  go  down  to  aunt  Susans 
befor  we  went  out  on  the  mane  street  to  buy  torpedos.  Ros — if  yu  ever 
want  yu  child  restored  to  yu  a  live  yu  have  got  to  act  with  us  alone  yu 
and  yu  friends  only,  we  tel  yu  positivly  if  yu  love  yu  child  the  detectives 
are  yu  worst  enemies,     if  yu  have  ihem  in  yu  service  they  will  \ye  the 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  99 

means  of  yu  losin  yu  child  forever,  if  they  interfea  in  our  bisines  we 
can  never  efect  the  change  an  death  inevitably  will  be  the  result,  we 
can  not  keep  the  child  forever,  we  don't  want  to  keep  him  any  longer 
than  to  give  yu  time  to  procur  the  mony  we  thought  yu  were  better 
fixt  for  money  or  we  would  never  took  yu  child  but  since  we  have  him 
we  shal  cary  out  our  plan  with  him.  this  corosponence  with  us  must 
stop  short  we  wil  not  keep  it  up  longer,  befor  yu  git  this  we  shal  join 
our  friends  at  a  distance  but  we  wil  notice  al  yu  have  to  say  either  in 
ledger  star  or  herald  or  Sunday  dispatch  anything  you  wish  to  communi- 
cate to  us  head  it  C  R  R  instead  of  Ros.  dont  let  yu  wife  be  foolishly 
led  by  the  Spiritualist  to  think  they  can  tel  her  anything  bout  Charley, 
there  is  but  one  thing  on  earth  outside  of  us  that  has  the  power  to  tel  yu 
an  that  is  the  money,  yu  wil  find  in  the  end  that  we  speak  truth  for 
once,  This  man  Woster  is  innocent  he  has  nothin  to  do  with  us,  do  as  yu 
please  with  him  an  make  the  most  out  of  him  yu  can.  our  advice  to  yu 
is  an  we  hope  yu  will  take  it  for  once  that  is  dont  yu  state  in  personals 
that  yu  have  the  mony  until  yu  have  it  naled  up  in  the  box  we  described 
to  you  an  redy  to  give  wen  caled  for.  the  brokers  we  se  have  had  a  metin 
an  think  they  can  restor  yu  child  an  bring  us  to  justice — they  mean  wel 
to  yu  but  they  be  actin  under  a  great  delusion — if  they  be  friends  to  yu 
let  them  make  the  mony  up  which  is  the  only  thing  can  restor  the 
child — if  they  will  not  do  that  yu  drop  them  unless  yu  want  to  cut  yu 
child's  throat — if  they  want  revenge  let  them  git  it  after  yu  get  yu  child, 
this  is  a  friendly  advice  do  as  yu  think  best — yu  hear  no  more  from  us  ti) 
we  no  yu  mind — we  have  told  yu  that  yu  will  se  yu  child  again  but  it 
depends  with  yu  an  yu  only  in  what  condition  you  se  him.  We  thought 
we  would  be  ready  to  setle  this  bisines  to-day  but  it  must  be  delayed. 

In  this  letter  reference  is  made  to  articles  which  ap- 
peared in  the  newspapers,  proposing  that  citizens  should 
offer  a  reward.  They  say  it  would  be  a  fatal  mistake 
if  the  person  should  call  for  the  money  and  I  not  be 
prepared  to  pay  it,  as  it  never  would  be  called  for  a 
second  time.  They  refer  to  the  arrest  made  of  a  per- 
son, who  they  declare  does  not  belong  to  their  party, 
and  reiterate  the  caution  about  having  nothing  to  do 
with  the  detectives,  and  speak  of  the  excitement  in  the 
city  as  being  so  great  that  it  was  almost  impossible  for 


100  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

them  to  do  anything.  They  speak  of  the  demand  made 
by  some  of  the  newspapers  for  the  return  of  some  arti- 
cles that  would  determine  with  certainty  that  they  really 
have  Charley,  which  they  decline  doing;  but  give 
some  less  hazardous  evidences  of  his  being  in  their 
possession.  They  speak  of  not  wanting  to  keep  the 
child  any  longer  than  to  give  me  time  to  get  the 
money,  and  acknowledge  that  they  are  disapp>ointed  in 
my  pecuniary  circumstances.  They  say  they  are  about 
going  from  the  city,  and  indicate  the  newspapers 
through  which  I  can  communicate  with  them,  with  the 
heading  changed  from  Ross  to  C.  R.  R.  They  advise 
Mrs.  Ross  not  to  listen  to  Spiritualists,  and  refer  to  a 
meeting  of  brokers,  who  were  at  that  time  consulting 
about  offering  a  reward  for  the  arrest  of  the  abductors 
and  the  restoration  of  the  child,  and  close  the  letter  by 
saying  I  will  see  my  child  again,  but  it  depends  upon  my 
action  if  he  will  be  dead  or  alive ;  lastly,  that  they  are 
not  ready  to  settle  the  business  on  this  day,  as  they 
had  agreed. 

This  letter  indicates  extreme  caution  on  the  part  of 
the  abductors.  The  intense  excitement  that  prevailed 
in  the  city  and  throughout  the  country,  they  evidently 
felt  to  be  no  common  outburst  of  passion,  but  a  real, 
deep-felt  purpose,  indicating  that  no  quarter  would  be 
given  to  the  miscreants  should  they  be  discovered.  This 
fear  is  also  manifested  by  them,  by  their  frequently 
warning  me  against  taking  advice  of  the  detectives ;  and 
although  an  air  of  security  is  assumed,  they  plainly 
felt  that  they  were  treading  on  the  brink  of  a  danger- 
ous precipice,  and  so  failed  to  keep  the  appointmcrtt 
in  not  sending  for  the  box. 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  lOI 

It  became  very  clear,  after  a  few  letters  had  been  re- 
ceived, that  no  ordinary  person  devised  the  plot,  and 
that  it  was  being  skillfully  and  cautiously  worked  up 
by  a  thoughtful  and  cool  villain,  apparently  without  a 
weak  link  or  mistake  of  any  kind. 

Although  the  letters  generally  are  of  great  length, 
often  covering  four  sides  of  foolscap  paper,  written  in  a 
disguised  hand,  the  only  peculiarity  discovered  in  the 
writing  is  in  the  formation  of  some  of  the  letters,  which 
are  uniformly  made  wherever  they  occur,  and  indi- 
cate the  usual  way  the  writer  formed  them. 

Mrs.  Ross  had  been  told  that  ;^20,000  was  demanded, 
and  ten  hours  was  required  after  the  money  was  paid  be- 
fore Charley  would  be  restored;  also  that  the  time  had 
been  appointed  for  the  person  to  come  for  the  money, 
and  that  the  officers  were  detailed  to  remain  in  the 
house  for  our  protection.  This  intensely  increased  her 
already  great  excitement,  so  that  upon  being  suddenly 
aroused  at  n-ight,  not  an  unusual  circumstance,  she  was 
much  alarmed. 

Arrangements  were  made  by  which  the  officers  could 
secrete  themselves,  and  yet  be  able  to  hear  any  conver- 
sation with  persons  at  the  door  or  inside  the  house,  and 
at  a  signal  they  were  at  once  to  appear  and  arrest  the 
person  who  should  ask  for  the  box. 

About  twelve  o'clock  one  night  we  were  awakened 
by  a  violent  ringing  of  the  bell,  and  supposed  the  mes- 
senger had  come  to  get  the  box.  The  officers  took 
their  positions;  Mrs.  Ross  stood  on  the  landing  at  the 
head  of  the  stairs  agitated  with  fear,  while  I  went  to  the 
door  to  invite  whoever  was  there  to  come  in.  On  open- 
ing the  door,  two  strangers  asked  if  this  was  my  resi- 


102  CHARLEY    ROSS 

dence.  I  invited  them  to  come  in.  One  of  them  handed 
me  his  card,  and  stated  that  they  both  Hved  a  distance 
off,  and  that  the  person  who  had  accompanied  him  had 
some  information  which  he  thought  might  be  of  value, 
and  he  desired  to  tell  me  without  any  delay.  He  com- 
municated what  he  had  heard  and  seen,  and  they  left, 
having  caused  much  needless  excitement 

My  house,  as  well  as  my  place  of  business,  u.i^  visited 
by  acquaintances  and  strangers  who  had  suggestions  to 
offer,  information  to  give,  or  who  came  to  extend  their 
kind  sympathies;  and  it  seemed  to  me  that  every  per- 
son, both  in  the  city  and  from  other  |5laces,  whose  mind 
was  not  well  balanced,  or  who  was  a  monomaniac  upon 
any  particular  subject,  found  us  out,  and  proposed  his 
way  of  discovering  Charley,  or  of  restoring  him  to  us. 
Of  course  they  all  meant  kindly,  and  their  motives  were 
accepted  in  the  proper  spirit 

Sunday  seemed  to  be  generally  selected  by  these 
persons  to  call.  During  one  afternoon  three  came  to 
my  home  about  the  same  time ;  one  a  German,  who 
spoke  very  broken  English.  He  said,  "  You  lost  your 
boy.  If  you  show  me  the  exact  place  the  boy  got  into 
the  wagon,  I  will  surely  bring  him  back  to  you  within 
three  days,  either  dead  or  alive."  I  thought  the  easiest 
way  to  dispose  of  him  was  to  take  him  out  on  the  lane, 
and  show  him  as  nearly  as  I  could  the  place  where  the 
children  had  been  taken  into  the  wagon.  "Here  ?"  he 
said;  "well,  I  bring  him  back  to  you  in  three  days." 
How  he  intended  doing  it  I  did  not  inquire,  nor  have  I 
heard  from  him  since.  Having  got  clear  of  him,  I 
asked  the  second  friend  what  he  desired  to  say.  He 
replied,  "  You  cut  off  your  hair  and  beard  and  your 


PUBLIC   INTEREST   IN   THE   CASE.  IO3 

child's  hair.  It's  wrong.  The  Bible  says  you  must  not 
cut  off  the  hair ;"  and  in  confirmation  turning  to  a  verse 
in  the  Bible  in  which  the  Nazarite  is  required  to  let  his 
hair  grow^  he  added,  "  God  has  punished  you  for  cut- 
ting off  your  hair.  He  punished  me,  and  two  of  my 
children  died  because  I  cut  off  my  hair.  You  must  not 
use  razor  or  scissors,  but  let  your  hair  grow,  and  all 
will  be  right.  Your  child  will  come  back  when  your 
hair  grows."  "Well,  my  friend,"  I  said,  "if  that  is  all 
you  have  to  say,  there  is  a  lady  waiting  to  see  me :  you 
will  please  excuse  me." 

The  lady  said  she^  came  from  New  York  expressly  to 
see  me,  felt  deeply  for  my  loss,  and  thought  she  could 
be  of  service  to  me ;  to  which  I  replied  I  should  like  to 
know  what  information  she  had,  or  what  she  proposed 
doing.  She  began  a  history  of  her  own  and  her  hus- 
band's life ;  told  me  who  she  was,  and  where  she  lived 
in  the  city  of  New  York,  nothing  of  which  was  interesting 
to  me  ;  and  expecting  she  might  keep  me  the  remainder 
of  the  day,  I  told  her  there  was  another  person  waiting 
to  see  me,  and  asked  her  to  tell  me  as  quickly  as  possi- 
ble what  she  knew  relating  to  the  recovery  of  my  little 
boy.  After  much  hesitation,  she  said  before  her  mar- 
riage she  practised  clairvoyance,  and  was  considered  an 
excellent  medium;  but  having  married  a  minister,  on 
account  of  persons'  prejudices,  she  did  not  think  it 
proper  to  exercise  her  powers ;  but  my  loss  being  so 
peculiar,  she  would  be  glad  to  do  what  she  could  to 
fathom  the  mystery.  "Well,  madam,"  I  replied,  "  I  have 
no  objection  to  a  trial  of  your  skill  in  whatever  capac- 
ity you  please ;  and  certainly  if  you  find  the  child,  there 
will  be  some  grounds  for  faith  in  your  theory."     She 


104  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

left  me,  after  exacting  a  promise  that  if  she  discovered 
where  Charley  was  and  sent  for  me,  I  would  go 
immediately  where  she  directed;  but  I  have  not  heard 
from  her  yet. 

At  another  time  two  strangers,  early  in  the  morning, 
called  at  my  place  of  business,  and  not  finding  me  in, 
after  a  little  hesitation  told  my  brother  that  they  knew 
where  my  little  boy  was  secreted.  Upon  questioning 
them,  he  found  they  had  no  definite  information ;  and 
suspecting  they  were  fanatics,  told  them  to  bring  the 
child  home,  and  he  would  give  them  one  thousand  dol- 
lars. On  leaving  him  they  said  they  would  go  to  Nor- 
ristown  and  bring  Charley  home  that  day.  During 
the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  I  received  a  telegram 
from  Mrs.  Ross  as  follows:  "Come  home  quickly; 
good  news."  Without  delay  I  hastened  home  and 
eagerly  inquired  for  the  good  news.  She  said  three 
men  came  to  the  house  about  two  o'clock,  and  went 
directly  to  the  stable  and  ordered  the  boy  to  harness 
the  horse,  telling  him  they  were  going  for  Charley. 
The  boy,  supposing  it  was  all  right,  commenced  putting 
the  horse  to  the  wagon,  when  Mrs.  Ross  inquired  who 
those  men  were?  One  of  them  whom  she  had  seen  in 
Germantown  stepped  forward  and  told  her  their  object; 
at  the  same  time,  brandishing  his  pistols  and  knife,  said: 
"  We  are  well  armed,  and  expect  to  have  a  hard  fight  for 
him."  He  said  the  other  two  men  were  friends  of  his 
from  the  city,  and  they  were  going  to  Norristown. 

Suspecting  that  the  two  men  were  the  persons  who 
had  been  at  my  place  of  business  in  the  morning,  I  asked 
her  if  they  had  taken  the  horse  and  wagon,  to  which 
she  replied  "  Yes ;   but  the  boy  went  with  them."     I 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  I05 

then  told  her  they  were  Spiritualists,  if  not  worse.  Her 
countenance  at  once  indicated  the  great  disappointment 
she  felt ;  for  she  confidently  believed  they  would  surely 
come  back  with  Charley,  and  had  telegraphed  me 
that  I  might  be  at  home  when  they  returned. 

They  did  not  get  back  until  after  twelve  o'clock  at 
night,  and  the  boy  said  he  had  driven  them  he  did  not 
know  where.  He  only  knew  that  they  had  called  at  a 
number  of  houses  near  Norristown,  and  under  pretense  of 
selling  sewing  machines  had  succeeded  in  getting  into 
them,  and  at  last  they  came  to  a  house  which  they  were 
told  was  occupied  by  Creegar,  the  counterfeiter.  Then 
they  were  positive  they  would  find  the  object  of  their 
search ;  and  preparing  themselves  for  a  desperate  fight, 
they  aroused  the  old  man  and  ransacked  the  house 
from  the  cellar  to  the  garret.  Finding  no  child  in  the 
house,  they  concluded  to  return,  saying  they  must  cer- 
tainly have  mistaken  the  direction  that  the  spirits  had 
indicated.  Thus  ended  the  exploit  of  these  worthy 
knights  of  the  knives  and  pistols. 

Another  instance  of  this  class  of  persons  was  that  of 
a  man  calling  at  the  house,  and  asking  permission  of 
Mrs.  Ross  to  try  to  bring  Charley  back.  She  told 
him  if  he  did  no  harm,  he  might  do  as  he  liked. 

He  went  to  the  stable,  followed  by  the  children,  and 
getting  a  carriage  from  the  barn,  took  off  a  wheel,  then 
went  to  get  a  small  piece  of  wood  from  one  of  the 
posts  at  the  entrance  of  the  place;  but  finding  they 
were  of  stone,  he  selected  three  spears  of  grass,  which 
he  said  would  answer  his  purpose.  He  then  put  these 
on  the  axle  and  replaced  the  wheel,  and  began  turning 
it,  at  the  same  time  reading  from  a  book  some  prayers 


I06  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

or  incantations.  He  told  the  children  that  at  every 
revolution  of  the  wheel,  Charley  was  being  brought 
one  mile  nearer  home. 

For  a  time  the  novelty  of  the  proceeding  amused 
the  children,  but  soon  Walter  wanted  to  examine  more 
closely  into  the  matter ;  gradually  he  approached  the 
carriage,  seeming  much  interested,  until  finally  he  at- 
tempted to  climb  into  it,  when  suddenly  the  man 
exclaimed,  "  Now  you  have  broken  the  spell :  I  cannot 
bring  your  brother  home,"  and  indignantly  left. 

The  following  morning  he  came  again  and  com- 
menced the  same  process,  telling  the  children  that  he 
would  have  to  take  off  each  wheel,  and  afterwards  drive 
off  a  short  distance  to  get  Charley.  He  remained  all 
the  morning.  About  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  a 
friend  drove  into  the  yard,  and  finding  the  shed  occu- 
pied as  he  thought  by  some  person  repairing  tlie  car- 
riage, fastened  his  horse  to  a  tree.  Soon  a  very  heavy 
shower  came  up,  and  my  brother-in-law,  seeing  the 
horse  and  wagon  standing  in  the  rain,  went  to  put  them 
under  shelter,  and  on  opening  the  door  of  the  stable, 
struck  the  carriage  upon  which  the  man  was  operating, 
at  the  same  time  accosting  him  with  "  What  are  you 
doing  here  ?"  The  operator  at  once  ceased,  and  said, 
"It  is  of  no  use  for  me  to  try  any  longer.  The  spell  which 
I  attempt  to  pyt  on  the  persons  who  have  the  child  is 
always  broken."     This  was  the  last  visit  he  paid  us. 

Knowing  the  interest  taken  in  our  calamity  by  per- 
sons wherever  it  had  been  heard  of,  we  endeavored  to 
give  a  respectful  hearing  to  every  one,  although  at 
times  being  subjected  to  great  annoyances,  as  in  the 
cases  just  mentioned. 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN    THE    CASE.  10/ 

A  number  of  letters  too  were  received  from  persons 
in  different  places,  suggesting  the  kind  of  notes  that 
should  be  obtained  and  given  to  the  abductors,  such  as 
counterfeit  money  to  be  procured  from  the  United  States 
Treasury  department,  notes  of  large  denominations  of 
from  ^100  to  ^i,ooo  each,  the  numbers  and  letters  of 
which  should  be  registered,  and  private  marks  put  on 
each  note,  and  the  banks  and  bankers  in  all  cities  to  be 
furnished  with  memoranda  of  them,  and  to  be  requested 
to  examine  every  note  of  like  denomination  that  should 
be  offered  to  them  either  for  exchange  or  on  deposit. 

[The  abductors  in  their  letters  carefully  guarded 
against  any  strategems  in  transmitting  the  money,  and 
did  not  propose  to  deliver  up  the  child  simultaneously 
with  the  receipt  of  the  money  ;  but  required  the  advan- 
tage of  five  hours,  afterwards  extended  to  ten,  for  the 
purpose  of  giving  them  an  opportunity  of  examining 
the  money,  in  order  to  find  out  if  it  was  good,  and  to 
see  that  there  were  no  private  marks  on  the  notes, 
which  were  to  be  in  denominations  not  exceeding  tens, 
as  well  as  to  allow  them  time  to  return  the  child.  In 
the  event  of  any  fraud  being  discovered,  the  life  of  the 
child  was  to  be  forfeited.     See  letters  No.  6  &  7.] 

Although  the  personal  of  July  14th  was  precisely  as 
dictated  in  the  previous  letter,  the  kidnappers  questioned 
whether  it  had  been  published  in  good  faith ;  as  they 
refer  to  editorials,  which  they  interpreted  as  conveying 
the  impression  that  the  money  was  still  to  be  collected  ; 
which,  however,  was  not  the  case.  The  newspapers 
merely  referred  to  the  efforts  then  being  made  to  offer 
a  reward.  The  abductors  dictated  no  answer  to  the 
last  letter  (No.  8) ;  but  closed  the  negotiation  for  the 


I08  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

time  being  by  saying   I  should    not  hear  from   them 
again,  until  they  knew  my  conclusions. 

In  the  Public  Ledger  o{  July  2ist,  the  following  per- 
sonal appeared : 

C  R  R.     Money  is  ready.     How  shall  I  know  your  agent? 

On  the  following  day  an  answer  was  received,  dated 
Burlington,  July  2ist,  postmarked  Camden,  N.  J.,  July 
22d,  and  reads  as  follows : 

[No.  9.  Burlington,  July  21,  1874.  Postmarked  Camden,  July  22,  1874.] 
Burlington,  July  21. — Ros.  yu  statement  in  Monday  Star  is  so  con- 
flictin  with  yu  statement  in  this  momin  personals  that  we  are  yet  unable 
to  comprehend  yu  nevertheless  we  wil  act  upon  yu  promise  as  if  it  was 
made  by  an  angle,  in  monday  Star  yu  say  yu  can  have  no  faith  in  us 
neither  do  we  have  any  faith  in  yu  from  the  nature  of  this  bisines  it  is  to 
be  presumed  neither  can  have  implicit  confidence,  the  way  this  bisiness 
stands  is  this  yu  pay  us  the  money  yu  are  left  without  anything  to  bind 
us  to  our  promis  but  our  own  word  which  yu  say  yu  do  not  believe,  then 
on  what  ground  can  we  efect  the  change,  we  have  seen  yu  own  state- 
ment that  yu  would  not  comply  with  our  terms  an  yet  yu  say  (the  money 
is  rcdy  how  shal  I  no  yu  agent)  the  fact  of  us  having  yu  child  and  you 
having  paid  us  every  dollar  we  demanded  what  further  use  could  we  have 
for  him  ?  He  has  answered  the  end  for  which  M-e  took  him ;  this  is  one 
reason  why  we  should  give  him  up.  The  next  reason  is,  if  we  should 
ever  play  the  same  game  in  any  other  part  of  the  country,  who  would 
have  any  confidence  in  getin  their  child  after  they  had  paid  the  ransom 
if  you  should  lose  yu  child  we  don't  say  we  shal  ever  play  this  trick  in 
this  country  again,  for  the  popular  outcry  is  a  most  to  great.  It  has  been 
stated  that  since  the  great  outcry  of  the  jjeople  that  we  would  gladly  sur- 
render the  child  without  a  ransom.  Do  not  deceive  yuself  on  that,  for 
we  could  set  the  child  at  liberty  at  any  moment,  but  we  never  wil  alive 
without  the  money,  no  never,  never,  never!  Ros,  in  order  to  ever  get 
yu  child  alive  there  is  but  one  way  left  yu  an  that  is  the  way  we  point 
out  to  yu.  Yu  must  comply  with  our  terms  in  every  particular,  and  met 
our  agent  step  by  step  as  we  instruct  yu.  If  yu  mean  to  act  in  faith  to 
us  yu  can  have  no  objection  to  this  course.  The  fair  an  the  faulce  part  is 
left  with  yu  to  chose,  for  it  is  with  yu  alone  we  shal  presume  to  act  an 
the  life  of  Chailey  shal  bind  yu  to  yu  word,     do  not  deceive  yuself  an 


PUBLIC   INTEREST    IN    THE   CASE.  IO9 

think  this  is  only  to  frighten  yu.  we  appeal  to  the  highest  power  exist 
on  high  to  bear  us  witnes.  (we  solomly  swear  befor  the  twelve  houses 
of  heaven  so  sure  as  the  sun  rises  in  the  east  an  sets  in  the  west,  so  sure 
shall  Charly  die  if  yu  brake  yu  promis  with  us  an  may  the  same  curse 
fal  upon  us  if  we  do  not  keep  our  promis  with  yu.  Ros  we  want  to 
caution  yu  stil  more  for  this  is  a  question  involves  the  life  or  death  of 
yu  child,  do  yu  desire  to  make  a  change  of  yu  money  for  the  child  if 
yu  are  sincere  take  advice  from  us  who  yu  think  are  yu  worst  enemies 
but  in  the  end  yu  wil  find  we  were  yu  best  advisers  the  advice  is  that  if  yu 
want  to  regain  yu  child  drop  the  police  entirely  have  nothing  to  do  with 
them  while  yu  are  transacting  this  bisines  with  us  or  the  whole  thing  wil 
prove  a  failure  an  yu  child  must  die  if  yu  mean  to  ensare  us  then  our 
advice  is  enlist  al  the  power  yu  can  invoke  but  be  sure  yu  prove  succes- 
ful  for  one  false  step  seals  the  fate  of  yu  child.  We  have  told  yu  it  is 
impossible  to  ensnare  one  of  our  friends.  Do  yu  not  believe  us,  or  are 
yu  wilin  tu  put  the  life  of  yu  child  at  issue  an  test  it  with  us.  In  all  of 
our  letters  we  have  told  yu  the  life  of  yu  child  shal  be  the  bond  that  bind 
yu  tu  yu  promise ;  any  stratagem  or  false  promise  on  yu  part  must  an 
shall  seal  the  fate  of  your  child  and  you  have  none  to  blame  for  yu  be  his 
murderer  an  not  us — for  one  false  promise  from  yu  we  shal  stop  at 
nothing  until  we  haveing  given  yu  a  prof  that  we  can  keep  our  word 
even  unto  blood,  i  repeat  if  yu  want  yu  child  yu  comply  with  our  terms 
in  every  particular.  One  false  step  on  yu  part  will  make  yu  and  yu 
family  weep  tears  of  blood  but  if  yu  act  in  faith  with  us  al  wil  go  wel 
with  yu.  What  have  the  authorities  done  towards  findin  yu  child.  They 
have  done  nothin  yet  and  they  are  as  far  from  his  hidin  place  to-day  as 
they  were  on  the  6th  day  of  July  (yu  money  alone  can  find  him)  if  these 
terms  suit  yu  answer  the  followin  in  the  Ledger  personals. 

C  R  R.     i  will  agree  to  the  terms  in  every  particular. 

P.  S. — have  tlie  money  ready  as  we  described  we  wil  send  prof  with 
him  so  yu  can  no  him  when  he  comes. 

They  call  attention  in  this  letter  to  statements  in 
a  newspaper,  which  they  assume  to  be  from  me, 
and  which  conflict  with  the  last  personal ;  but  that 
they  will  nevertheless  act  upon  my  promise.  Allusion 
is  made  to  the  fact,  that  if  they  receive  the  money  be- 
fore the  child   is   given  up,  I  will  have  nothing  but 


no  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

their  word  to  rely  upon  for  the  fulfillment  of  their 
promise.  They  reason  that  they  would  have  no  further 
use  for  the  child  after  the  money  is  paid,  and  it  would 
be  to  their  interest  to  return  him;  for  by  so  doing,  they 
would  inspire  confidence  in  other  parents,  should  they 
steal  another  child.  They  fear,  however,  that  the  excite- 
ment which  has  been  produced  by  this,  their  first 
attempt,  will  prevent  their  trying  it  again  in  this  country. 
They  assert  very  emphatically,  that  they  never  will  set 
free  the  child  without  the  money,  and  caution  me 
again  against  permitting  any  interference  by  the  police; 
and  declare  that  if  any  treacherous  step  is  made  by  me, 
the  child  shall  be  put  to  death,  and  that  I  will  be  his 
murderer.  It  seemed  to  me  that  in  the  previous  letters 
everything  had  been  said  that  could  be  expressed  to 
terrify  and  alarm ;  yet  in  this  letter  it  is  declared  that  I 
will  be  the  murderer  of  my  own  little  son  unless  the- 
demands  of  these  cruel  wretches  be  fully  complied 
with.  Every  successive  letter  bears  evidence  of  an 
effort  to  add  some  new  pang,  to  intensify  the  anguish 
already  inflicted,  and  to  render  me  so  desperate  that  I 
would  willingly  accede  to  anything  they  should  de- 
mand. 

The  authorities  realized  that  the  whole  country  was 
looking  to  them  to  unravel  the  mystery,  and  night  and 
day  were  in  consultation  with  Mr.  Bullitt,  Mr.  McKean 
and  others,  making  almost  superhuman  efforts  to 
detect  somethmg  that  would  lead  to  the  discovery 
of  the  abductors,  and  the  place  in  which  the  child  was 
concealed  ;  yet  not  a  thing  was  found  out  that  gave  the 
least  possible  clue  to  the  parties. 

The  mayor  of  the  citj^  was  called  upon  by  a  number 


PUBLIC    INTEREST    IN   THE   CASE.  Ill 

of  citizens,  and  petitions  were  signed  by  many  others, 
requesting  him  as  chief  magistrate  of  the  city  to  offer 
rewards  for  the  arrest  of  the  perpetrators  of  the  crime, 
and  the  recovery  of  the  child,  which  he  could  not  do 
without  the  authority  of  the  city  councils,  and  those 
bodies  had  not  acted  on  the  matter,  and  would  not 
meet  again  until  September. 

A  number  of  citizens  then  pledged  themselves  to  the 
Mayor  for  the  payment  of  the  ;^20,ooo,  and  over  his 
official  signature  the  following  advertisement  was  pre- 
pared July  22d,  and  published  in  the  newspapers  the 
following  day.  It  was  also  printed  on  large  bills,  and 
posted  in  every  conspicuous  place  in  the  city  and  sur- 
rounding country. 

$20,000   REWARD   FOR  THE   KIDNAPPERS. 

Mayor's  Office,  ) 
City  of  Philadelphia,  July  22^  1874.  J 

At  the  instance  of  the  citizens  of  Philadelphia,  I  hereby  offer  a  reward 
of  Twenty  thousand  dollars  for  the  arrest  and  conviction  of  the  abductors 
of  Charles  Brewster  Ross,  son  of  Christian  K.  Ross,  of  Philadelphia, 
and  the  restoration  of  that  child  to  his  parents.  [  Here  follows  a  de- 
scription of  the  child,  horse  and  wagon,  and  the  men,  as  already  given.] 
Signed,  William  S.  Stokley, 

Afayor  of  Philadelphia. 

While  many  persons  in  the  cause  of  humanity  were 
doing  all  in  their  power,  it  was  believed  that  with  the 
stimulus  of  this  large  reward  thousands  more  would  be 
induced  to  use  all  their  powers  of  mind  and  body  to 
work  on  the  case,  and  that  it  would  now  be  impossible 
for  the  criminals  long  to  elude  pursuit. 

The  chief  of  police  also  published  a  card,  stating  that 
neither  the  police  nor  the  detective  force  would  claim 
any  part  of  the  reward;  but  that  it  should  all  be  paid  to 


112  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

whomsoever  would  give  information  that  would  lead  to 
the  discovery  of  the  criminals  and  the  child. 

My  fears,  as  expressed  at  the  time,  were  that  offering 
the  reward  for  the  abductors  and  the  child  would  cause 
the  kidnappers  to  become  fugitives,  and  that  they  would 
take  the  child  further  away,  when  it  would  be  more  dif- 
ficult to  find  either.  We  knew  that  the  writer  of  the 
letters  was  in  the  city  or  very  near  to  it,  from  the  fact 
that  the  same  day  on  which  personals  were  published, 
answers  were  received.  This  supposition  proved  cor- 
rect ;  for  very  soon  they  left  our  city,  and  removed  the 
child  further  away,  and  required  an  increased  time 
between  the  receipt  of  the  money  and  the  return  of 
Charley. 

Aroused  as  the  public  had  been,  yet,  when  the 
Mayor's  reward  was  published,  the  excitement  became 
much  greater ;  statements  and  rumors  (many  of  tliem 
false)  were  caught  up  and  magnified  by  newspaper  re- 
porters, and  extra  editions  of  papers  were  issued  and 
sold  by  thousands.  Letters  containing  information, 
suggestions,  and  reporting  suspicious  people  and 
children  that  were  supposed  to  resemble  Charley, 
began  now  to  pour  in — many  of  which  are  interesting, 
but  will  be  reserved  for  subsequent  chapters;  and  still 
we  were  no  nearer  the  accomplishment  of  our  daily  and, 
nightly  wishes  and  prayers — 

"  Lord,  how  long  wilt  thou  look  on  ? 
Rescue  my  soul  from  their  destructions. 
My  darling  from  the  lions." 

The  words  of  the  despairing  Psalmist  seemed  literally 
to  express  the  feelings  of  our  hearts. 


CHAPTER  V. 

LETTERS     FROM    ABDUCTORS    CONTINUED.   MEMORABLE 
TRIP   TO  ALBANY,    N.   Y. 


HE  following  was  dictated  as  the  answer  to  the 
last  letter : 

C.  R.  R.     "  I  will  agree  to  the  terms  in  every  particular." 

It  appeared  in  the  personal  column  of  the  Ledger  of 
July  2 2d,  and  to  it  the  following  reply  was  received  on 

the  24th : 

[  No.  10.] 
Philadelphia,  July  24 — Ros.  we  have  seen  yu  reply  in  personal 
(yu  agree  to  the  terms  in  every  particular)  we  accept  yu  offer  for  we 
consider  yu  fuly  understand  the  great  an  momentus  obligation  yu  place 
youself  under  when  you  assented  tu  this  agreement,  we  be  sory  that 
we  cannot  effect  the  chang  to-day.  our  creed  is  such  that  it  forbids  us 
to  any  bisines  of  this  kind  only  at  a  certain  quarter  of  the  moon  an  the 
phace  of  the  moon  has  just  passed  over  so  we  have  got  tu  wate  one  week 
befor  we  can  transact  any  bisines  between  us.  this  delay  may  be  a  great 
sorce  of  torture  tu  yu  but  it  cannot  be  avoided,  we  pledge  ourselves  in 
the  mean  time  yu  child  shal  not  suffer  for  any  thing  only  the  close  con- 
finement which  is  necesary  for  his  safe  keepin.  we  have  him  so  that 
we  feel  at  ease  against  all  the  detective  force  in  the  country  ever  feritin 
him  out.  the  authorities  have  offered  ^20,000  for  the  recovery  of  the 
child  an  detection  of  us  if  they  had  yu  interest  at  hart  this  would  be  the 
worst  thing  they  could  do.  this  is  only  oferin  a  reward  for  the  sacrifice 
of  yu  child,  We  told  yu  at  the  beginin  that  yu  child  could  never  be  takin 
from  us  a  live  that  he  was  so  situated  that  we  could  destroy  him  in  one 
instant,  an  forever  out  of  al  prof  against  us  but  yu  seam  to  have  no 
faith  in  our  word,  nevertheless  yu  have  nothin  to  fear  on  that  point 
for  he  can  never  be  found  by  any  detective  force,  neither  can  any  re- 
ward no  matter  how  large  be  any  temptation  to  us  to  peach  one  on  the 

(  "3  ) 


114  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

other  foi  we  are  sworn  an  blood  bound  unto  death  lu  never  give  each 
other  away.  Ros,  one  week  must  intervene  befor  we  can  negotiote  for 
the  restoration  of  Charley  by  that  time  there  will  be  an  ^100,000  reward 
yu  will  se  by  that  time  the  detectives  can  avail  yu  nothin  or  yu  wil  se 
that  we  spak  trought  from  the  beginin.  that  there  was  no  earthly  hope 
left  yu  only  in  payiu  the  ransom  in  good  faith  an  then  yu  get  yu  child, 
what  we  mean  in  good  faith  is  tu  set  no  trap.  We  no  it  is  not  posible 
for  yu  to  trap  us.  but  by  any  stratigem  on  yu  part  or  connivance  it 
wil  thwart  our  perposes  an  the  money  wil  never  come  to  us.  if  this 
result  takes  place  through  any  act  or  connivance  of  yuse  then  yu  lose  yu 
(child  forever.)  If  yu  do  as  we  instruct  yu  an  this  money  gits  lost  (it 
shal  be  our  los  and  not  yuse)  an  yu  shall  git  yu  child  just  as  if  we  got 
the  mony.  no  matter  what  our  instruction  is  for  yu  to  do  with  the  mony 
yu  do  it  an  yu  child  shal  be  restored  to  yu.  if  we  tcl  yu  to  bum  it  up 
do  so,  if  we  tel  yu  to  throw  it  off  the  dock  do  so,  if  we  tel  yu  to  give  it  to 
any  one  do  so,  an  yu  child  wil  be  restored  yu  wether  the  mony  gits 
lost  or  not  through  any  act  of  ours.  Ros.  the  whole  contract  is  sumed 
up  in  these  words,  yu  pay  us  the  mony  in  good  faith  in  denominations 
from  IS  to  los  in  U.  S.  notes  an  no  private  marks  fixed  on  them,  then  we 
consider  yu  have  fulfilled  yu  part  and  yu  shal  have  yu  child  restored 
safe  to  yu.  if  we  do  not  fulfil  our  part  in  good  faith  to  yu,  we  invoke  the 
vengeance  of  hell,  if  there  be  an  hell,  to  be  our  eternal  portion,  we  have 
told  yu  that  we  wil  transact  this  bisines  with  yu  and  yu  friends  only,  we 
know  a  true  friend  wil  not  advise  yu  rong  if  he  has  the  interest  of  yu 
child  at  heart  we  shall  no  nothing  about  detectives  in  the  bisines  if  yu  cal 
them  in  for  advice  or  asistance  it  wil  be  at  the  peral  of  yu  child's  life  for 
in  their  eigemess  to  arrest  us,  which  they  never  can  do,  t^ey  will  surely 
be  the  means  of  sacrificing  yu  child,  we  shal  never  cal  on  yu  but  once 
for  the  mony  so  it  is  yu  part  to  have  it  at  a  minute's  notice,  but  yu  have 
plenty  of  time  yet.  due  notice  wil  be  given  yu  when  to  have  it  at  hand 
(we  request  no  answer  tu  this)  till  yu  hear  from  us  a^ain  which  perhaps 
wil  be  one  week,  in  the  meantime  yu  and  yu  family  console  youself  that 
yu  child  is  wel  an  safe  tu  yu.  an  to  us  against  al  detective  power, 
nothin  surprised  us  more  after  we  had  told  yu  the  imposibility  of  findin 
the  child  an  the  risk  it  wold  be  tu  the  child's  life  tu  find  his  hidin  place 
yet  yu  in  disregard  of  this  advise  persisted  in  havin  the  detectives  search 
for  him.  time  wil  tel  yu  that  we  do  not  lie  in  every  word  we  write,  the 
reward  signifies  nothin,  with  us  wether  it  be  $20,oc»  or  $20,000,000  it 
wil  accomplish  nothin  with  us  an  the  authorities  wil  fail  on  that  point  tu 


LETTERS    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS.  I  15 

bribe  one  of  us  as  yu  wil  se  in  the  end  of  this  bisines.  Ros  our  word  for 
it  no  harm  shal  befal  yu  child  intentionaly  til  yu  hear  from  us  again  7 
days  by  that  time  yu  must  be  prepared  for  his  ransom  if  yu  ever  expect 
him  alive.  Ros  mark  the  selfishness  of  Mr.  Stokley  an  his  committe 
of  brokers  what  do  they  say.  not  one  cent  for  ransom  but  millions  for 
conviction,  do  they  have  yu  interest  at  heart,  no  it  is  a  selfish  motive, 
lliey  are  wilin  to  sacrifice  yu  child  that  theirs  be  safe,  why  do  they  not 
pay  their  mony  to  have  yours  restored  first,  an  then  offer  a  reward  for 
our  conviction. 

In  this  letter  the  writer  cautiously  professes  to  rely 
on  the  statement  made  in  the  last  personal,  and  post- 
pones the  exchange  for  one  week,  stating  by  way  of 
excuse  that  the  moon  is  not  at  a  phase  for  the  propitious 
transaction  of  such  business.  This  delay  he  knows  will 
torture  me,  but  is  unavoidable.  In  the  meantime  they 
pledge  themselves  that  Charley  shall  not  suffer,  except 
from  the  confinement  necessary  for  his  safe  keeping. 

Of  the  reward  of  twenty  thousand  dollars  offered  for 
the  recovery  of  the  child  and  the  arrest  of  the  abduc- 
tors, he  says  that  it  will  avail  nothing  in  the  accom- 
plishment of  either  object,  and  that  they  are  sworn  and 
blood-bound  not  to  inform  on  each  other.  The  ransom 
alone  will  cause  them  to  restore  Charley;  ten  times 
twenty  thousand  dollars  offered  as  a  reward  will  not 
influence  them  to  change  their  plan ;  yet  they  intimate 
that  the  reward  should  have  been  divided,  part  of  it  for 
the  child  and  the  remainder  for  their  arrest,  and  say 
that  the  reward  as  offered  is  intended  for  the  protection 
of  others,  and  not  for  the  object  of  recovering  my  son. 
They  affirm  that  if  by  any  stratagem  on  my  part  the 
money  should  fail  to  reach  them,  the  child  will  be 
killed;  but  if  by  any  fault  of  theirs  it  should  be  lost, 
Charley  will  surely  be  restored.     They  invoke  the  ven- 


Il6  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

geance  of  hell  if  they  should  not  fulfil  their  contract 
They  again  specify  that  the  money  is  to  be  in  United 
States  notes  of  denominations  of  ones  to  tens,  without 
private  marks  of  any  kind,  and  reiterate  their  former 
warnings  against  permitting  the  detectives  to  interfere 
in  any  way.  The  cruel  threatenings  are  repeated  in 
case  any  deception  is  attempted,  or  any  treacherous 
movement  is  made. 

It  was  supposed  that  some  superstition  had  influenced 
them  in  delaying  the  exchange  on  account  of  the  moon 
having  passed  a  certain  quarter;  but  the  reason  for  the 
delay  was  apparent  on  the  night  subsequently  fixed  for 
obtaining  the  money. 

It  is  clearly  stated  that  in  pursuance  of  a  prearranged 
plan  the  child  was  to  be  restored  only  on  receipt  of  the 
ransom,  and  that  no  reward  would  induce  them  to 
change  this  plan,  their  purpose  being  to  pursue  the  busi- 
ness of  child-stealing;  hence  they  employed  this  cruel 
threatening,  to  force  a  compliance  with  their  demands, 
which  would  not  have  been  necessary  had  they  been 
willing  to  accept  a  reward. 

There  is,  however,  in  this  letter  one  solace — they  say 
that  the  child  is  well,  and  that  he  shall  not  suffer  for 
anything.  My  recollection  goes  back  to  the  night  after 
receiving  this  letter,  when  on  arriving  home  I  was  asked 
by  my  wife  whether  I  had  heard  anything  of  Charley 
during  the  day.  With  an  attempt  at  cheerfulness,  yet 
with  a  heart  full  of  solicitude  for  the  future,  I  replied, 
yes,  he  is  alive  and  well,  and  not  suffering  for  anything. 
Her  countenance  lighted  up  with  an  expression  that 
indicated  the  happiness  she  felt  on  hearing  of  her  dear 


LETTERS    FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  1 1/ 

boy,  and  gratitude  to  God  for  having  thus  far  spared  his 
Hfe.  But  the  feeling  of  anxiety  that  was,  and  is  still  ever 
present  with  her,  lest  Charley  should  be  maltreated, 
or  become  sick,  none  but  a  mother  can  comprehend, 
a  mother  whose  child  has  been  torn  from  her  by  crea- 
tures devoid  of  mercy. 

No  answer  was  required  to  the  last  letter,  but  I  was 
instructed  to  be  ready  at  a  minute's  warning  to  obey 
whatever  the  writer  might  enjoin. 

On  July  28th  the  next  letter  was  received,  and  is  as 
follows : 

[No.  II.  Collected  at  Second  and  Arch  streets.] 
Philada.,  July  28. — Ros  are  yu  not  convinced  by  this  time  that  the 
detectives  can  render  yu  no  service  whatever,  are  yu  agoing  let  them 
keep  yu  under  the  delusion  that  they  can  yet  recover  yu  child  an  bring 
us  to  justice,  we  tel  yu  the  thing  is  imposible  we  fear  them  not — 
neither  do  we  fear  they  wil  ever  find  Charley  until  we  find  him  for  yu. 
We  se  in  the  personals  that  Mr.  Percll  a  milionaire  of  New  York  offers 
to  pay  the  required  amount  to  redeem  yu  child  an  ask  no  questions,  but 
we  have  no  confidence  in  him  neither  would  we  treat  with  him  if  he  of- 
fered one  milion  in  hand  an  no  questions  asked,  in  the  transaction  of  this 
bisines  we  are  determined  to  no  no  one  but  yu,  an  if  yu  suffer  these  letters 
to  go  out  of  yu  hands  so  that  they  can  personate  yu  in  effectin  this  change 
we  shal  hold  the  child  subject  to  the  fulfillment  of  yu  promise  an  one 
fals  step  by  yu  or  by  any  one  acting  for  yu,  yu  may  consider  the  bisenes 
is  at  an  end,  an  the  trap  has  sprung  that  render  further  negotiation  useles 
to  yu.  At  the  end  of  this  week  must  end  this  biseness ;  it  must  place  him 
in  yu  hands  safe  an  sound  or  must  place  him  in  the  grave ;  it  is  left 
entirely  with  yu.  if  yu  have  not  the  mony  to  redeem  him  an  ask  for  an 
extension  of  time  we  wil  keep  him  for  yu  but  under  no  other  circum- 
stances we  wil  not.  We  are  not  afraid  to  keep  him  for  we  set  the  whole 
force  at  defiance  to  find  his  hidin  place.  No  matter  how  grate  the  reward 
is,  it  signifies  nothin  with  us — they  are  goin  to  search  every  house  in 
the  city,  we  wil  give  yu  the  satisfaction  to  tel  you  he  is  not  in  the  city 
nor  ever  has  been  since  the  day  he  left  home,  nor  he  never  wil  be  again 
unles  we  return  him  to  yu  for  the  ransom,  we  wil  give  you  the  satisfaction 


Il8  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

of  knowin  that  he  is  within  ICX)  miles  of  this  city  an  yet  we  defy  al  the 
devels  out  of  hell  to  find  him.  we  tel  yu  sincerely  we  have  prepared 
this  place  for  every  emergency  an  it  is  death  for  yu  to  find  him 
while  he  is  in  our  custody,  we  teld  yu  in  our  last  letter  we  could  not 
transact  any  business  for  one  week,  we  are  now  prepared  to  effect  the 
change  as  soon  as  yu  be  redy,  but  under  no  circumstances  say  yu  be  redy 
when  yu  be  not  able  to  put  yu  hand  on  it,  an  hand  it  out.  rest  assured  if 
our  agent  cals  for  it  an  he  does  not  get  it  without  wailing,  he  will  never 
come  again  an  the  our  of  redemjilion  is  forever  gone  by  with  you.  from 
you  former  promises  we  take  it  as  granted  that  yu  be  agoin  to  redeem 
yu  child  in  good  faith,  it  is  unnecessar)'  therefore  to  repeat  (he  consequences 
of  any  perfidey  or  fals  step  on  yu  part,  we  teld  yu  to  put  the  mony  in 
a  box,  but  we  now  tel  yu  to  put  the  mony  in  a  strong,  white,  leather 
valise,  locked  an  double  straped  an  be  prepared  to  give  it  or  take  it 
wherever  we  direct  yu.  if  yu  are  directed  to  cary  it  yuself  yu  may  take 
al  the  friends  yu  pleas  with  yu — but  donl  let  the  cops  know  yu  bisines 
nor  go  with  yu  unles  yu  want  the  bisines  to  turnout  a  failure,  if  yu  want 
to  trap  take  the  whole  force  with  yu  an  then  be  sure  yu  know  what  yu  be 
doin — for  we  know  what  we  l)e  doin.  this  is  al  the  caution  necesary 
for  yu  to  save  yu  child  alive,  if  you  can  have  all  things  ready  as  we  have 
directed  yu  by  thursday  the  30th  insert  the  folowin  in  tJu  /ra^^r  personal 
(John — it  shall  be  as  you  desire  on  the  30th.)  Ros  you  may  fix  any  other 
date  that  is  convenient  for  you.  Ros  yu  have  sed  yu  had  no  confidence 
in  these  men  an  would  not  do  as  they  requested  yu.  now  we  say  yu 
must  do  as  we  request  yu,  or  there  is  no  earthly  hope  left  yu  to  save  yu 
child  alive,  this  is  the  only  alternitive  given  yu  an  yu  wil  find  we  are  pre- 
pared for  every  emergency,  detection  is  impossible  if  yu  do  not  ransom 
him,  he  must  die.  if  yu  attempt  to  arrest  any  of  our  agents,  he  must  die. 
If  yu  fail  to  comply  with  the  terms  after  promising — he  must  die. 

This  letter  begins  with  the  oft-repeated  caution  not  to 
depend  on  the  detectives  to  discover  either  the  child 
or  his  captors.  It  alludes  to  an  advertisement  that  ap- 
peared in  one  of  the  New  York  newspapers,  in  which 
the  confederates  place  no  confidence,  and  admonish  me 
not  to  allow  their  letters  to  be  used  by  any  one  for  the 
purpose  of  effecting  an  exchange,  as  they  will  recognize 
no  other  person  than  myself,  and  reiterate  their  purpose 


LETTERS    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS.  1 19 

that  the  life  of  the  child  shall  be  held  subject  to  the 
faithful  fulfillment  of  the  promises.  The  end  of  the 
week  is  appointed  to  close  the  business,  but  an  exten- 
sion of  time  is  promised  if  I  desire  it. 

The  abductors  notice  the  general  search  for  the  child 
in  the  houses  of  the  city,  and  say  he  is  neither  in  the 
city  now,  nor  has  he  been  since  the  day  he  was  taken 
from  his  home,  and  never  will  be  again  unless  they  re- 
turn him  for  the  ransom ;  they  further  say  that  he  is 
within  100  miles  of  this  city,  and  yet  defy  men  and  dev- 
ils to  find  him. 

They  distinctly  declare  that  the  plan  was  formed  for 
every  emergency,  and  it  would  be  death  to  the  child 
should  he  be  discovered  while  in  their  keeping.  They 
announce  their  readiness  to  make  th^  exchange,  and 
wait  my  answer,  repeating  the  consequences  of  any  de- 
ception on  my  part,  and  requiring  the  money  to  be  put 
in  a  valise  instead  of  a  box,  with  another  caution  as  to 
the  detectives.  They  direct  a  personal  to  be  inserted  in 
the  Ledger  of  July  30th,  with  the  heading  changed  from 
C.  R.  R.  to  John,  and  close  the  letter  by  repeating  the 
threats  that  the  child  must  die  unless  I  ransom  him,  or 
if  any  of  their  agents  be  arrested. 

Additional  evidence  is  given  in  this  letter  that  the 
plot  had  been  arranged  previous  to  the  abduction,  and 
that  the  place  in  which  the  child  was  to  be  secreted 
had  been  selected,  and  every  precaution  taken  to  pre- 
vent a  surprise.  This  accounts  for  the  boldness  which 
they  assumed  in  the  first  letter,  and  which  continued  to 
be  expressed  in  every  succeeding  letter.  It  was  evident 
that  the  abductors  read  attentively  all  that  was  published 


120  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

about  the  matter  in  the  daily  papers  of  this  city  and  in 
New  York,  as  they  frequently  make  quotations  from 
them,  and  in  a  number  of  their  letters  they  refer  to  edi- 
torials that  conflict  with  their  plan  of  working  out  the 
case. 

The  last  letter  was  received  on  Tuesday,  and  the  time 
appointed  for  the  exchange  was  the  end  of  the  week. 
No  intimation  was  given  where  or  how  it  would  be 
effected,  but  the  money  was  to  be  taken  from  the  box 
and  put  in  a  white  leather  valise,  which  was  to  be  locked 
and  doubled  strapped,  thus  indicating  tliat  a  trip  to  a 
distant  place  would  be  proposed. 

Captain  Heins,  with  the  gentlemen  who  had  volun 
teered  to  assist  in  unravelling  the  mystery,  and  who  had 
been  deeply  interested  in  the  case,  strained  every  nerve, 
sparing  no  labor,  time  nor  expense,  in  endeavoring  to 
discover  a  clue  to  the  abductors  and  the  child.  Dis- 
appointed in  one  direction  they  all,  as  one  man,  imme- 
diately turned  to  look  elsewhere.  They  suffered  no 
suspicious  person,  nor  the  most  minute  circumstance,  to 
pass  without  being  patiently  and  thoroughly  investi- 
gated. Baffled  as  they  had  been,  they  were  yet  hopeful 
that  their  efforts  would  meet  with  ultimate  success. 

The  enormity  of  the  crime,  and  the  stimulus  of  so 
large  a  reward,  made  every  one  vigilant  to  observe  all 
suspicious  people;  and  persons  who  were  traveling  with 
a  child  thought  to  resemble  the  description  of  Charley, 
were  closely  watched  by  the  employees  at  the  various 
railroad  depots,  by  conductors  of  trains,  as  well  as  by 
travelers  occupying  the  cars.  A  number  of  instances 
of  this  kind  occurred,  and  were  reported  by  passengers 


LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  121 

on  trains  on  different  roads,  but  generally  too  late  to 
trace  them  up.  Yet,  in  some  cases,  persons  were  de- 
tained until  it  was  decided  that  the  child  they  had  with 
them  was  not  my  Charley. 

A  lady  of  this  city  with  a  child  having  long,  light 
curly  hair,  light  complexion,  about  five  years  old,  and 
not  unlike  Charley  in  appearance,  was  in  the  cars  at 
the  West  Philadelphia  depot,  en  route  for  Massachu- 
setts. Before  the  train  started  some  of  the  passengers, 
supposing  the  child  was  mine,  spoke  of  it  to  others 
waiting  in  the  depot.  Very  soon  a  crowd  of  several 
hundred  persons  collected,  and  insisted  that  the  officer 
on  duty  at  the  depot  must  exert  his  authority,  and  de- 
tain them  until  the  child  could  be  seen  by  a  member  of 
my  family.  The  officer  told  the  lady  he  was  obliged 
to  take  her  and  the  child  to  the  Central  Police  Office, 
that  the  people  thought  she  had  Charley  Ross  with 
her.  She  accompanied  him,  followed  by  a  few  persons, 
who  reported  to  others  they  met  that  my  little  boy  had 
been  found,  and  that  they  were  on  their  way  to  the 
Central  Office  to  have  him  identified.  Soon  after  their 
arrival  at  the  office  an  excited  crowd  collected,  anxious 
to  know  the  result.  Happening  to  call  at  the  Central 
Office  shortly  after  their  arrival,  I  at  once  comprehended 
the  situation,  and  asked  the  lady  if  the  child  she  had 
with  her  was  supposed  to  be  my  Charley?  She  replied 
in  the  affirmative.  I  answered  immediately,  he  is  not 
my  son,  but  he  bears  a  very  striking  resemblance  to 
him;  he  is  too  large,  and  is  certainly  older  than  Char- 
ley. The  lady  then  said,  before  leaving  home  she  had 
taken  the  precaution  to  change  the  child's  clothing  from 


122  CHAKLr.V    KOSS. 

a  linen  suit  to  a  dark  one,  as  she  feared  difficulty  on 
the  way  to  her  destination,  having  been  informed  that 
her  child  had  a  very  striking  resemblance  to  the  picture 
of  my  little  son,  but  was  glad  that  they  had  been  stopped 
where  she  had  friends  who  knew  both  herself  and  the 
child.  In  order  to  avoid  any  further  trouble,  she  asked 
that  a  paper  should  be  given  her  certifying  that  the 
child  was  not  Charley  Ross,  which  the  Chief  of  Police 
cheerfully  gave  her,  signed  by  him  and  myself,  and  to 
which  the  seal  of  the  city  was  attached.  She  left  the 
office  in  charge  of  an  escort,  followed  by  a  curious 
crowd,  and  apparently  pleased  that  she  could  feel  safe 
from  further  annoyance  on  her  journey. 

Another  instance  occurred  in  Allentown,  Pennsylva- 
nia. I  received  a  letter  from  a  person  who,  from  infor- 
mation obtained  from  a  depot-master,  wrote  that  a  man 
having  a  little  boy  with  long  curly  hair  and  light  com- 
plexion had  arrived  by  rail  at  that  place ;  that  he  had 
tlie  child's  hair  cut  off  and  had  ordered  a  suit  of  new 
clothes  for  him  ;  that  the  man  seemed  reserved  and  pre- 
vented the  child  from  talking  with  any  one,  and  that  he 
had  gone  away  the  same  night,  but  in  about  a  week 
afterwards  had  returned.  He  was  a  stranger,  and  his 
whole  manner  was  suspicious.  A  letter  was  also  re- 
ceived by  the  Chief  of  Police  from  a  different  person, 
giving  similar  information,  adding  further  that  the  peo- 
ple believed  the  child  to  be  Charley  Ross. 

The  Chief  sent  Lieut.  Crout  of  the  Reserve  Police 
Force  to  investigate  the  matter.  When  the  Lieutenant 
arrived  in  Allentown,  he  learned  that  this  man  with  the 
child  had  been  permitted  to  go  away;  but  getting  a 
trace  of  him,  he  followed  in  pursuit,  telegraphing  from 


LETTI£RS    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS.  123 

Station  to  station  and  making  inquiry  for  the  party. 
For  two  days  he  was  unsuccessful  in  obtaining  any  in- 
formation, and  then  having  learned  that  the  man  and 
child  had  crossed  the  mountains,  he  obtained  a  convey- 
ance, determined  to  overtake  them.  He  stopped  at 
every  village  to  inquire  if  they  had  been  seen,  and  soon 
found  persons  who  had  seen  the  man  and  child,  and 
who  in  describing  the  child  said  he  was  not  more  than 
two  years  old,  and  had  blue  eyes.  The  same  report 
being  confirmed  by  different  persons,  some  even  putting 
the  age  of  the  child  at  less  than  two  years,  the  Lieuten- 
ant, satisfied  that  he  could  not  be  Charley,  abandoned 
the  pursuit.  The  same  man  and  child  were  afterwards 
detained  at  Harrisburg  and  Pittsburgh.  He  now  took 
up  the  trail  of  another  party  of  whom  he  accidentally 
heard  at  a  small  village  in  Luzerne  county.  Pa.  He 
was  informed  of  a  gipsy  party  that  had  been  encamped 
near  the  town,  and  who  had  with  them  a  child  of  a  fair 
complexion,  that  they  kept  closely  concealed  in  a  cov- 
ered wagon  ;  he  also  learned  that  they  had  gone  in  the 
direction  of  Danville.  Immediately  securing  the  aid 
of  a  person  familiar  with  the  country,  he  went  in  pursuit 
of  the  gipsies,  who,  on  arriving  at  Danville,  he  found 
had  gone  towards  Pottsville  two  days  before.  The 
lieutenant  telegraphed  a  description  of  the  party  to  the 
authorities  of  all  the  towns  between  Danville  and  Potts- 
ville, and  to  those  of  Pottsville,  asking  them  to  detain 
the  gipsies  until  he  could  reach  them. 

The  Chief  of  Police  in  Pottsville  discovered  that  they 
were  in  Hamburg,  a  village  near  Reading,  and  at  once 
telegraphed  to  the  authorities  of  that  place  to  hold  them, 
a-«  it  was  suspected  that  they  had  Charley  Ross  with 


124  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

them.  They  were  arrested,  and  before  Lieut.  Crout 
reached  Hamburg,  a  telegram  was  sent  to  Philadelphia, 
saying  "A  party  having  Charley  Ross  is  detained 
here."  The  news  spread  rapidly  through  the  city. 
People  became  almost  wild  with  a  new  excitement. 
Bulletin  boards  were  surrounded ;  Chestnut  and  Mar- 
ket streets  were  thronged ;  crowds  of  people  surrounded 
the  Central  Police  Office,  and  my  place  of  business  was 
besieged  by  an  excited  multitude;  men  hurried  from 
their  places  of  business  inquiring  the  latest  news,  and 
the  countenances  of  all  were  animated  with  joyful  ex- 
pectation. "  Extras"  were  issued,  and  newsboys  ran 
through  the  streets  crying  out  "Charley  Ross  is  found," 
and  disposed  of  their  papers  as  rapidly  as  they  could 
hand  them  out. 

The  report  was  telegraphed  to  the  different  places  of 
summer  resort,  and  telegrams  came  from  all  points  in- 
quiring if  the  rumor  was  true. 

Mr.  Joseph  Jones,  Vice  President  of  the  Reading 
Railroad,  dispatched  a  special  train  in  which  Kennard 
H.  Jones,  Chief  of  Police,  and  my  wife's  brother,  Joseph 
W.  Lewis,  were  rapidly  conveyed  to  Hamburg. 

Having  been  disappointed  so  often,  I  was  not  sanguine 
that  the  child  was  Charley,  and  endeavored  to  main- 
tain as  much  calmness  as  possible ;  yet  it  was  impossi- 
ble not  to  partake  of  the  feeling  of  hope  so  universally 
manifested. 

Hamburg  is  about  two  hours  from  Philadelphia,  and 
the  time  seemed  long  for  the  train  to  reach  its  destina- 
tion. While  there  was  everywhere  expressed  hope  that 
Charley  was  found,  low  mutterings  were  uttered  indi- 
cating that  the  wretches  who  had  committed  the  act 


.^^ 


LETTEl^    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS.  1 25 

would  not  and  should  not  be  protected  by  the  officers; 
and  a  crowd  gathered  around  the  railroad  depot  who 
were  not  slow  to  express  their  determination  as  to  what 
they  purposed  doing  on  the  arrival  of  the  train. 

About  2  o'clock  a  message  was  received — "  Wrong. 
Not  Charley."  The  disappointment  to  the  sympathiz- 
ing public  really  seemed  greater  than  it  was  to  those 
most  deeply  interested ;  for  the  people  had  not  suffered 
the  disappointments  already  common  to  us,  nor  did 
they  appreciate  how  easily  mistakes  are  made  in  identity. 

At  Hamburg,  Chief  Jones  and  Mr.  Lewis  found  an 
excited  crowd  in  and  near  the  railroad  depot  waiting 
their  arrival ;  they  were  at  once  conducted  to  the  room 
in  which  were  the  so-called  gipsies,  and  Mr.  Lewis  at 
once  announced  that  the  child  "  is  not  Charley,"  and 
that  he  did  not  bear  the  slightest  resemblance  to  him. 
Shortly  after  their  departure  from  Hamburg,  Lieuten- 
ant Crout  arrived  from  Pottsville,  and  was  surprised  to 
learn  that  the  party  he  had  been  following  for  days  had 
been  the  cause  of  so  great  an  excitement.  He  was 
somewhat  chagrined  that  a  message  had  been  sent  to 
Philadelphia  before  his  arrival,  as  he  believed  he  could 
have  decided  the  matter,  so  as  to  have  avoided  the 
furor  that  had  so  greatly  disturbed  the  city. 

The  excitement  of  the  day  had  not  passed  away  ere 
I  received  the  following  letter  in  reply  to  a  personal  in 
the  Ledger  of  July  30th  : 

[  PERSONAL.] 

"  John,  It  shall  be  as  you  desire  on  the  30th." 
[  No.  12.] 
Philadelphia,  July  30. — Ros  :  from  yu  answer  this  day  you  signify 
everything  is  redy.     everything  is  redy  v^rith  us.     we  now  give  yu  a 
wide  margin  for  preparation  to  make  an  arest  if  yu  be  pleased  to  do 


126  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

your  actioas  this  day  desides  Charley's  fate  it  is  left  with  yu  alone 
wether  he  shall  live  or  die.  we  caution  once,  an  the  last  time  do  not 
think  we  are  trifling.  Ros.  you  are  to  take  the  12  P.  M.  train  to-night 
from  West  Philadelphia  for  New  York,  it  arrives  at  New  York  5.05 
A.  M.  take  a  cab  at  Cortland  or  Disbrossers  streets,  N.  Y.,  an  nde 
directly  to  the  grand  central  station  at  4  avenue  and  42d  streets,  take 
the  8  A.  M.  northern  express  by  way  of  hudson  river  (take  notice) 
you  are  to  stand  on  the  rear  car  and  the  rear  platform  from  the  lime  you 
leave  west  phila  depot  until  arrive  at  jersey  city — ^you  are  then  to  stand 
on  the  rear  platform  of  hudson  river  car  from  the  time  yu  leave  the 
grand  central  at  New  York  until  yu  arrive  at  Albany,  if  our  agent  do 
not  meet  yu  befor  yu  arrive  in  Albany  yu  wil  find  a  letter  in  post  office 
at  Albany  addressed  to  C.  K.  Walter  directing  yu  where  yu  are  then  to 
go.  Ros — the  probability  is  yu  may  not  go  one  mile  before  our  agent 
meets  yu  and  yet  yu  may  go  250  miles  before  he  intercepts  you  but  be  it 
where  it  may  yu  must  be  prepared  to  throw  the  valise  to  him  regardless 
of  all  risks,  the  risk  of  being  lost  we  assume  an  yu  get  your  child  with- 
out fail,  these  are  the  signals :  if  it  be  dark  the  moment  the  rear  car 
passes  him  he  wil  exhibit  a  bright  torch  in  one  hand  an  a  white  flag  in 
the  other  hand  but  if  it  be  light  he  wil  ring  a  bell  with  one  hand  and  a 
while  flag  in  the  other  band,  the  instant  yu  see  either  of  these  signals 
yu  are  to  drop  it  on  the  track  an  yu  may  get  out  at  the  next  station,  if  the 
cars  continue  on  their  course  we  consider  yu  have  kept  your  word,  and 
yu  child  shal  be  returned  yu  safe  but  if  they  stop  to  arrest  our  agent  then 
your  child's  fate  is  sealed,  this  letter  ends  all  things  in  regard  to  the 
restoration  of  yu  child. 

In  this  letter  the  announcement  is  made  that  every- 
thing is  ready  for  the  exchange,  and  a  fair  opportunity 
will  be  afforded  for  an  arrest  They  assert  that  to-day 
will  decide  Charley's  fate,  and  I  must  not  think  that 
they  are  trifling.  A  journey  is  marked  out ;  the  hour 
of  starting  is  fixed.  The  detail  of  the  plan  by  which 
they  expected  to  get  the  money  is  revealed,  and  the 
letter  is  closed  by  a  caution,  saying  that  if  by  any  op- 
position on  my  part  the  plan  should  be  defeated,  the 
consequences  must  rest  with  me. 

It  will  be  observed,  that  in  this  letter  the  effort  to 


Uv>^^      tvv>^  1\W-  W/P"  i"W-w>-     Aai      'VV^  '%a/v-V     AV^  f"^^^^ 


Reduced  Fac-Simile  of  Letter  Number  Twelve. 


.    j^  *vlV  W  tW^    W-  A»Mp^^  WVj^  tAV^  t/W^ 
U  ^^4,1^^,  SfciV-fe  (yNJvMft.owi  ^y>^n^    ' 


Reduced  Fac-Simile  of  Letter  Number  Twelve. 


LETTERS   FROM   THE  ABDUCTORS.  I3I 

spell  the  words  wrong  is  not  adhered  to,  and  with  the 
exception  of  words  of  from  two  to  three  letters,  the 
spelling  is  generally  correct.  It  will  also  be  noticed 
how  specifically  the  directions  are  given,  and  yet  how 
concisely ;  nothing  being  omitted,  nothing  superfluous. 
July  30th,  1874,  came  on  Thursday;  the  letter  was  re- 
ceived about  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  arrange- 
ments were  to  be  made  during  the  afternoon  and  evening 
as  to  what  action  should  be  taken  on  the  letter.  Greatly 
agitated,  as  my  reader  may  r.eadily  imagine,  I  took 
the  letter  to  Mr.  McKean,  and  following  his  advice,  a 
meeting  of  the  following  persons,  Mr.  W.  V.  McKean, 
John  C.  Bullitt,  Captain  Wm.  R.  Heins,  Detective 
Wood,  F.  D.  Lewis,  and  myself,  was  held  in  the  evening 
at  Mr.  Bullitt's  office,  to  consult  together  regarding  the 
letter. 

At  the  meeting  every  one  felt  that  a  crisis  had 
arrived,  and  that  a  point  had  been  reached  where  posi- 
tive action  was  demanded.  The  time  for  consultation 
was  short ;  it  was  difficult  to  determine  what  course  to 
pursue;  but  after  an  interchange  of  opinions,  it  was 
unanimously  agreed  that  I  must  go  as  directed  in  the 
letter,  and  that  advantage  must  be  taken  of  this  oppor- 
tunity to  reach  the  abductors  with  a  letter  containing  a 
clear  statement  of  my  position,  and  demanding  a  more 
direct  mode  of  communicating  with  them  than  was 
possible  through  the  personals  of  a  newspaper.  It  was 
thought  best  that  my  nephew,  F.  D.  Lewis,  and  an 
officer  in  citizen's  dress,  should  go  with  me  on  this  fear- 
ful trip,  which  appeared  to  be  fraught  with  such  momen- 
tous consequences. 

A  letter  having  been  prepared  was  put  in  the  valise, 


132  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

and  a  copy  fastened  to  the  outside  of  it     The  letter  is 
as  follows : 

Philadelphia,  July  ^o^  '^74' 
Sir : — Your  letter  of  this  date  is  received.  I  am  anxious  to  end  the 
suffering  and  suspense  of  the  terrible  four  weeks  that  1  have  just  passed 
through,  but  I  am  compelled  to  tell  you  that  I  cannot  throw  away  twenty 
thousand  dollars  on  the  wild  plan  you  suggest.  It  is  a  plan  where  all 
the  chances  are  on  your  side,  and  I  have  not  the  smallest  assurance  that 
I  will  ever  get  my  dear  child  into  my  possession  again.  It  is  impossible 
for  me  to  give  you  twenty  thousand  dollars  (j20,ooo),  and  trust  to  you 
to  bring  me  my  child  at  some  subsequent  time.  I  desire  to  act  with  you 
in  good  faith,  but  as  your  whole  correspondence  leads  me  strongly  to 
suspect  deception,  I  must  insist  upon  having  some  positive,  tangible 
proof  that  you  have  the  child,  and  that  after  receiving  this  I  must  in 
some  way  and  at  some  place  suggested  by  you,  meet  either  you  or  yours 
and  see  that  you  have  my  child  in  my  presence,  so  that  I  may  take  him 
simultaneously  with  your  receiving  the  money,  I  shall  look  for  a  letter 
from  you  in  Philadelphia  in  answer  to  this. 

I  have  come  here  in  response  to  your  call  with  a  friend  (not  an  officer) 
as  suggested  by  you  in  your  letter  of  28lh  instant,  and  in  so  doing  have 
complied  so  far  as  a  reasonable  man  can  with  your  plan.  I  cannot  give 
you  one  cent  until  I  see  my  child  before  me.  It  is  my  purpose,  as  I  have 
said,  to  act  in  good  faith ;  but  I  must,  before  going  further,  receive  every 
assurance  which  can  possibly  be  given  me,  first,  that  you  have  the  child, 
and  second,  that  his  delivery  to  me  will  be  simultaneous  with  the  delivery 
of  the  money  to  you. 

I  will  add  that  the  public  mode  I  have  used  in  compliance  with  your 
suggestions  of  answering  your  letters  is  not  satisfactory  to  me,  as  it  informs 
the  police  and  everybody  else  of  what  we  are  doing.  We  must  have 
some  better  mode  of  communication.  C.  K.  Ross. 

Arrangements  for  the  trip  having  been  completed,  my 
nephew  and  myself  left  Mr.  Bullitt's  office  at  1 1:30  for 
the  New  York  depot,  where  we  were  joined  by  the  officer, 
and  by  the  courtesy  of  the  superintendent  of  trains  on 
the  Pennsylvania  railroad,  permission  was  granted  me 
to  occupy  the  platform  of  the  last  car  of  the  train. 

At  12  o'clock,  midnight,  the  train  moved  off.     The 


LETTERS    FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  I33 

moon  was  full,  not  a  cloud  was  to  be  seen;  objects  could 
be  discerned  almost  as  clearly  as  in  the  full  light  of  the 
sun,  and  we  now  understood  the  reason  why  the  moon 
was  not  in  the  right  quarter  '*  to  transact  the  business," 
as  stated  in  the  letter  of  July  24th.  A  night  was  selected 
when  the  moon  would  be  full,  to  enable  their  confeder- 
ate to  see  if  they  were  being  watched,  as  well  as  to  see 
the  valise  when  it  would  be  dropped  from  the  car.  In 
the  letter  of  July  30th,  it  was  expressly  mentioned  that 
the  probability  was  that  I  should  not  have  to  go  one 
mile  before  I  might  see  the  signal,  and  yet  I  might  have 
to  go  the  250  miles.  These  instructions  necessarily 
kept  me  on  the  look-out  from  the  moment  I  left  the 
depot  in  West  Philadelphia  until  I  arrived  in  Albany, 
New  York. 

As  the  train  dashed  rapidly  along,  my  attention  was 
attracted  by  every  pile  of  wood,  and  bank  of  earth,  and 
bush,  and  post,  and  building,  along  the  road,  in  the  ex- 
pectation of  seeing  someone  jumping  out  from  his  hid- 
ing place  displaying  the  torch  and  flag,  the  signal  for 
the  valise  to  be  thrown  from  the  car.  This  of  course 
kept  up  a  painful  flutter  of  anxiety  over  the  whole  route 
— for  five  mortal  hours  my  brain  and  eyes  were  in  a 
fixed  agony. 

To  guard  against  any  attempt  being  made  to  take  the 
valise  from  me  at  any  of  the  stations  along  the  road, 
the  officer,  before  the  train  came  to  a  full  stop,  came  out 
of  the  car  on  the  platform,  and  as  the  train  moved  on 
again  resumed  his  seat,  leaving  me  alone  until  the  next 
station  was  approached.  The  singularity  of  my  posi- 
tion was  commented  on  by  those  who  saw  me,  and  the 
servant  who  had  charge  of  the  car  (a  sleeping  car)  said: 


134  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

"  That  man  must  have  a  pile  of  money  in  that  valise :  he 
has  been  standing  there  ever  since  we  left  the  depot  in 
Philadelphia,  and  he  has  two  men  with  him  to  guard 
him."  We  arrived  in  New  York  about  five  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  without  having  seen  any  signal  whatsoever. 
There  was  not  time,  after  it  was  determined  that  I  must 
make  the  trip,  to  change  my  clothing,  or  to  even  pro- 
cure an  overcoat,  so  that  the  dense  mist  which  arose 
from  the  swamps  of  New  Jersey  saturated  my  light  flan- 
nel suit,  and  I  had  become  thoroughly  wet  and  chilled, 
and  being  greatly  fatigued  by  holding  fast  to  the  railing, 
lest  I  should  be  thrown  from  the  car,  and  being  worn 
out  from  standing  so  long  a  time,  I  was  truly  thankful 
when  we  reached  Jersey  City. 

Crossing  the  river,  we  took  a  carriage  at  Desbrosses 
street  and  were  driven  at  once  to  the  Grand  Central  de- 
pot, as  instructed  in  the  last  letter.  At  eight  o'clock 
the  same  morning,  we  took  the  train  via  Hudson  River 
railroad  for  Albany.  Again  I  took  my  position  on  the 
rear  platform  of  the  last  car,  and  being  somewhat  re- 
freshed by  a  rest  of  about  two  hours,  the  first  fifty  miles 
was  traveled  without  any  feeling  of  fatigue.  But  about 
eleven  o'clock  the  heat  of  the  sun  became  oppressive ; 
the  wind  whirled  the  dense  smoke  from  the  engine 
backwards  into  my  face,  and  tlie  dust  made  by  the  train 
thundering  along  enveloped  me  in  a  continuous  cloud, 
and  yet  my  object  was  to  look,  watch,  see,  and  act  on 
the  insta7it.  The  railroad  following  the  tortuous  course 
of  the  Hudson  River,  as  every  one  who  has  traveled  on 
it  knows,  is  very  crooked,  with  many  short  curves  at 
close  intervals,  so  that  with  the  valise  in  one  hand,  and 
witli  the  other  hand  firmly  grasping  the  railing  of  the 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS.        I35 

car,  it  was  more  and  more  difficult  as  I  became  more 
and  more  exhausted,  to  maintain  my  hold  on  the  plat- 
form of  the  car.  The  valise  had  now  become  as  heavy 
as  lead,  although  it  contained  nothing  but  the  letter  that 
was  designed  to  reach  the  abductors :  and  I  became  so 
wearied  out  that,  after  standing  on  one  foot  and  then  on 
the  other,  after  changing  the  valise  from  one  hand  to  the 
other  and  then  back  again,  after  taking  every  possible 
position  consistent  with  an  approach  to  comfort,  I  felt 
that  I  must  give  up,  and  sit  down  in  the  car;  but  the 
constant  thought  was  present  with  me,  "  If  you  do,  you 
will  miss  the  signal."  And  yet  a  greater  strain  was  on 
my  brain  than  on  my  body,  to  say  nothing  of  the  dead 
weight  upon  my  heart. 

As  the  train  wound  along  around  hill,  bank  and  tree, 
each  instant  that  a  railroad  flagman  appeared  waving 
his  white  or  red  flag,  as  a  signal  to  the  passing  train,  I 
involuntarily  braced  myself  to  throw  off  the  valise.  So 
swiftly  sped  the  train  that  there  was  but  an  instant  to 
decide  whether  the  man  had  a  bell  or  not,  and  momen- 
tarily I  was  on  the  point  of  dropping  the  valise.  Not- 
withstanding the  necessity  of  keeping  a  constant  look- 
out, and  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  a  few  moments*  inat- 
tention might  render  the  whole  expedition  void,  I  was 
more  than  once  on  the  point  of  giving  up,  from  utter 
inability  to  keep  my  feet.  And  when  Albany  came  in 
sight,  I  was  so  glad  and  thankful  that,  for  the  moment, 
I  lost  a  sense  of  the  disappointment,  which  soon  afl:er 
returned  to  me  with  aggravated  intensity.  Begrimed 
with  smoke  and  dust,  I  arrived  in  Albany  about  one 
o'clock,  without  seeing  the  man  waving  a  white  flag  in 
one  hand  and  ringing  a  bell  with  the  other — the  signal 


136  CHARLEY   ROSS.  ' 

which  the  writer  of  the  letter  stated  I  should  see  on  this 
memorable  trip.  As  soon  as  we  had  dinner  we  inquired 
at  the  post-office  for  a  letter  addressed  to  C.  K.  Walter, 
according  to  the  instructions  in  the  letter,  in  case  the 
signal  was  not  seen  before  reaching  Albany.  Not  get- 
ting a  letter  during  that  day,  we  remained  there  until 
the  following  morning.  I  was  so  thoroughly  fatigued  by 
the  trip  and  exhausted  by  the  continuous  strain  on  my 
nervous  system,  that  when  in  the  afternoon  I  attempted 
to  rest,  it  was  impossible  for  me  to  remain  quiet,  and 
to  change  the  current  of  my  thoughts  I  walked  over  the 
city  the  remainder  of  the  day. 

We  left  Albany  for  home  the  following  morning 
(Saturday)  at  ten  o'clock,  A.  M.,  after  having  called  at 
the  Albany  post-office  a  number  of  times  and  failed  to 
get  a  letter,  and  arrived  in  Germantown  about  seven 
o'clock  the  same  evening. 

During  our^absence  the  following  letter  was  received 
at  my  place  of  business : 

[No.  13.] 

Phiia  31  July. — Ros  :  Yu  seem  to  have  no  faith  in  us  whatever,  we 
told  yu  to  be  at  yu  store  on  thursday  and  this  bisines  would  be  all  settled 
up  but  yu  seem  to  pay  no  attention  to  it.  at  the  time  we  supposed  yu  wer 
gitin  redy  to  effect  the  change  yu  were  as  the  Evening  Star  stated  on  you 
way  to  potsvill  to  see  some  child  there,  if  yu  ever  expect  to  git  yu  child  yu 
must  look  to  us  and  no  one  else  for  there  is  no  other  existin  powers  that 
can  restore  him  we  have  told  yu  to  let  the  detectives  take  their  own  way 
an  do  as  they  pleas  for  they  wil  do  yu  no  good  and  we  don't  think  they 
can  do  much  harm  if  yu  had  done  as  the  last  letter  instructed  you  and  let 
the  potsvill  affair  alone  yu  would  now  have  the  plasure  of  seeing  yu  child 
safe  at  home  after  we  had  seen  that  yu  had  gone  to  potsvill  we  did  not 
instruct  our  agent  to  meet  yu  from  the  fact  we  thought  it  was  no  use. 
if  yu  are  trifling  with  us  yu  wil  find  we  are  not  the  right  party  to  be  trifled 
with  but  if  yu  mean  squar  bisines  with  us  although  we  are  perhaps  the 
worst  men  in  the  world  we  wil  act  honorably  with  yu  in  this  affair,     we 


LETTERS    FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  1 3/ 

told  yu  the  last  letter  was  the  only  one  yu  should  ever  reseive  from  us  an 
we  would  keep  our  word  but  we  are  inclined  to  think  yu  did  not  get  it 
befor  yu  started  for  potsvill.  to  save  yu  al  further  trouble  an  vexation  in 
runing  around  to  false  reports  that  yu  child  is  found  here,  and  found  there, 
we  tel  yu  candidly  that  yu  child  is  not  in  the  possession  of  any  woman  or 
family  or  that  his  hair  is  cut  off  short,  to  save  yu  further  troble  pay  no 
attention  to  any  telegrams  of  that  description  for  it  is  only  trouble  in  vain 
for  yu.  your  childs  hair  is  the  same  length  that  it  ever  was  an  there  is 
no  disfigurement  whatever  in  him  but  he  is  kept  where  no  human  eye 
can  behold  him  yu  have  expressed  the  opinion  that  we  would  git  tired  of 
keeping  him  an  turn  him  over  to  some  charitable  institution.  dont 
flatter  yurself  with  such  an  idea  we  have  told  yu  what  his  end  is,  if  yu  do 
not  redeem  him  we  shal  never  digress  from  that,  he  wil  never  be  taken 
from  the  place  he  is  now  concealed  unless  he  is  brought  out  to  be  restored 
to  yu.  Ros.  if  yu  want  to  redeem  yu  child  yu  must  come  to  us.  you  can 
reach  us  through  the  personals  of  the  Ledger  or  Evening  Star,  our 
address  is  John,  a  change  can  be  easily  accomplished  if  yu  desire  it. 
remember  yu  have  our  word  in  lo  ours  the  whole  thing  shall  be  con- 
summated yu  git  yu  child  an  we  git  the  money 

In  this  letter  they  accuse  me  of  a  lack  of  faith  in 
them,  because  they  saw  it  stated  in  a  newspaper  that 
I  had  gone  to  Pottsville  to  see  a  child  on  the  day  they 
had  fixed  to  get  the  money,  and  in  consequence  did 
not  instruct  their  agent  to  meet  me;  and  say  that 
although  they  did  not  intend  writing  to  me  again,  yet 
they  think  I  may  not  have  received  the  last  letter 
before  starting  for  Pottsville. 

They  say  (to  prevent  further  trouble  to  me  in  look- 
ing after  children)  that  Charley  is  not  in  possession,  of 
a  woman  or  of  any  family,  that  his  hair  has  not  been 
cut  off,  and  that  he  has  not  been  disfigured,  but  is  kept 
where  no  human  eye  can  behold  him,  and  that  he  will 
not  be  handed  over  to  any  charitable  institution ;  also 
that  he  will  never  be  taken  from  the  place  in  which  he 
is  now  concealed,  unless  he  is  brought  out  to  be 
restored  to  me ;  and  they  close  by  indicating  the  papers 


138  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

through  which  I  can  address  them,  and  pledge  them- 
selves that  in  ten  hours  the  whole  matter  can  be  ended 
— that  is,  they  can  have  the  money  and  I  the  child. 

It  was  stated  in  one  of  the  early  editions  of  an  after- 
noon paper  that  I  had  gone  to  Hamburg  to  see  the 
child  that  was  detained  in  that  place;  but  this  was  a 
mistake,  and  was  corrected  in  the  later  papers. 

The  route  as  marked  out  by  the  abductors  was  rig- 
idly and  faithfully  followed,  and  it  was  with  no  little 
disappointment  that  I  received  the  above  letter,  which 
continued  the  suspense  in  which  I  had  been  kept,  and 
which,  by  again  repeating  the  cruel  threatenings,  with 
the  addition  that  Charley  was  so  closely  confined  as 
not  to  be  seen  by  any  one,  aggravated  the  suffering 
which  I  was  already  enduring. 

The  next  day,  Sunday,  after  my  return  from  Albany, 
my  nephew  and  I  went  to  the  city  to  learn  if  anything 
had  been  found  out  while  we  were  absent  The  letter 
from  the  abductors  had  been  received  on  Saturday  and 
was  given  to  us  to  read ;  and  the  following  personal 
was  prepared  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  John  C.  Bullitt, 
who,  with  Mr.  W.  V.  McKean  and  Captain  Heins,  had 
met  my  nephew  and  myself,  to  hear  our  report  of  the 
trip  to  Albany,  and  to  confer  together  as  to  what  fur- 
ther should  be  done.  The  following  personal  was  pre- 
pared, and  appeared  in  the  ledger  on  Monday  morn- 
ing, August  3d: 

"John,  your  directions  were  followed,  you  did  not  keep  faith.  Point 
out  some  sure  and  less  public  way  of  communicating  either  by  letter  or 
person." 

The  abductors  in  their  last  letter  indicated  the  way 
they  proposed  to  get  the  money,  and  their  instructions 


LETTERS  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS.        1 39 

were  followed  out ;  but  as  they  failed  to  perform  their 
part  of  the  agreement,  they  did  not  get  the  letter  in  the 
valise,  and  therefore  it  was  deemed  best  to  re-open  the 
correspondence  immediately. 

The  personal  was  prepared  to  inspire  them  with 
confidence  that  I  had  acted  in  good  faith  by  obeying 
their  instructions,  and  at  the  same  time  reflecting  on 
the  failure  to  carry  out  their  part  of  the  contract. 

It  also  embodied  the  main  object  of  our  letter,  which 
was  to  get  into  more  direct  and  closer  communication 
with  them. 

On  the  4th  of  August  an  answer  came  to  hand, 
which  is  as  follows: 

[No.  14.     Received  August  4,  1874,  in  the  morning.] 

Phila.  Aug,  3. — Ros — in  not  keepin  our  apointment  with  yu  was 
entirely  a  mistake  from  the  fact  of  havin  seen  a  statement  in  evening 
star  that  yu  had  gone  to  potsvill  on  the  day  you  was  to  setle  this  bisines 
with  us.  we  saw  the  mistake  but  not  in  time  to  communicate  with  our 
agent  or  to  notify  yu  not  to  go  as  we  directed  yu.  Yu  say  yu  want  us  to 
point  out  some  sure  way  by  which  this  money  can  be  transmited  to  us — 
of  course  we  can  not  call  on  yu  personaly  neither  can  we  receive  it  by 
letter.  Ros — We  will  make  the  followin  proposition  to  yu  and  if  yu 
comply  with  the  terms  propounded  we  wil  settle  this  bisines  in  very 
quick  time  satisfactory  to  both  parties  concerned  so  far  as  the  restoration 
of  your  child  is  concerned.  We  assure  yu  that  yu  child  is  now  well  and 
in  as  good  health  as  when  he  left  yu  home — do  yu  consent  to  the  fol- 
lowin proposition  and  stake  the  life  of  Charley  on  the  faith  of  yu 
promise. 

Proposition  1st.  Yu  wil  hand  the  box  with  the  amount  in  to  our 
agent  when  he  calls  to  yu  store. 

Proposition  2d.  Yu  wil  hand  him  the  box,  ask  him  no  questions — 
not  folow  him — not  put  any  one  to  folow  him — ^not  tel  him  what  the  box 
contains — not  notify  the  detectives  so  they  can  folow  him — not  do  any- 
thing that  wil  interupt  its  transit  to  us. 

Do  yu  agree  to  the  first  and  second  proposition  while  we  hold  the  life 
of  Qiarley  to  bind  yu  to  yur  promise.     Remember  when  yu  promise 


140  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

your  word  is  life  or  death  to  yu  child.  If  yu  consent  to  these  terms 
answer  the  folowing  in  Ledger  or  Evening  Star  to  save  time.  (John  i 
agree  to  the  1st  and  2d  propositions.)  The  reason  we  have  warned  yu 
in  al  our  letters  about  the  detectives  to  keep  them  ignorant  of  this  com- 
promise bisines  is  not  that  we  fear  detection  but  we  now  they  wil  in- 
terfear  and  baffle  us  from  receiving  the  money  and  yu  from  giting  yu 
child,  we  told  yu  in  our  last  this  corrospondonce  must  end  but  it  was  a 
mistak  on  our  part  therefor  we  be  wilin  to  give  yu  a  fair  opportunity  to 
redeem  yu  son  if  you  wil.  when  our  agent  call  on  yu  he  will  give  yu  a 
symbol  of  which  yu  wil  previously  receive  a  facsimilar  so  there  wil  be 
no  posibly  mistake  in  him,  if  there  be  it  shal  be  our  loss  and  not  yours 
providing  yu  do  as  instructed,  if  we  lose  the  money  through  our  agent 
yu  get  yu  child  just  as  if  we  got  every  dollar. 

Here  the  abductors  say  they  were  misled  by  the 
statement  in  the  newspaper  that  I  had  gone  to  Potts- 
ville,  and  did  not  discover  it  in  time  to  notify  me  or  to 
communicate  with  their  agent.  They  misconstrued 
part  of  the  last  personal,  and  declare  that  Charley  is 
in  as  good  health  as  he  was  when  he  was  taken  from 
his  home.  They  make  two  propositions  to  which  they 
ask  my  assent,  and  present  another  way  to  obtain  the 
money,  again  warning  me  against  permitting  the  detect- 
ives interfering  to  prevent  the  money  reaching  them, 
and  say  that  the  life  of  the  child  is  suspended  on  the 
faith  of  my  word.  The  person  whom  they  will  send 
for  the  box  will  be  furnished  with  a  symbol  of  which 
they  will  send  me  a  fac-simile,  to  prevent  any  mistake 
being  made  in  recognizing  the  proper  messenger;  and 
say  that  if  I  follow  their  instructions  and  any  loss 
occurs  through  their  agent,  the  child  will  nevertheless 
be  restored  to  me.  As  before  stated,  it  was  a  matter  of 
much  speculation  as  to  how  the  abductors  could  get 
the  money  and  restore  the  child  without  detection;  but 
having  the  advantage  of  being  unknown  to  us,  and  the 


LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  I4I 

life  of  the  child  being  held  for  the  faithful  performance 
of  all  their  demands,  and  requiring  ten  hours  after  the 
money  was  received  by  them  before  the  child  would 
be  restored,  there  seemed  to  be  no  difficulty  in  adopt- 
ing ways  to  accomplish  their  object,  if  they  could  only 
be  assured  that  I  would  act  in  good  faith: — this  they 
doubted,  as  is  evident  from  the  many  cautions  in  their 
letters. 

The  propositions  they  make  in  the  last  letter  are 
based  entirely  on  their  word,  and  so  guarded  is  the 
second  one,  that  no  point  is  left  uncovered  that  might 
lead  to  their  detection.  They  profess  to  understand 
the  expression  in  the  personal.  "  Point  out  some  sure 
and  less  public  way  of  communicating,  either  by  letter 
or  otherwise,"  to  mean  that  some  sure  way  of  trans- 
mitting the  money  to  them  should  be  suggested;  while 
the  object,  as  clearly  stated,  was  to  get  into  a  more 
sure  and  less  public  way  of  addressing  them  than 
through  the  limited  medium  of  the  daily  papers,  to 
which  I  had  been  confined. 

It  was  now  resolved  that  any  answers  subsequently 
to  be  made  through  the  personal  columns  of  the  papers, 
should  be  such  as  might  be  suggested  by  the  circum- 
stances as  they  should  arise,  and  not  to  be  circumscribed 
by  such  words  as  the  abductors  chose  to  dictate.  This 
policy  being  settled,  the  answer  published  to  this  letter 
is  a  departure  from  all  the  others,  by  entirely  disagree- 
ing to  their  terms,  and  states  boldly  that  we  would  not 
be  restricted  by  their  propositions.  It  appeared  in  the 
Ledger  of  August  4th,  and  is  as  follows  ; 

John.     Propositions  are  impossible.     Action  must  be  simultaneous. 


142  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

On  the  5th  of  August  the  following  reply  was  re- 
ceived : 

[No.  15.  Received  August  5,  1874.] 
Philadelphia,  August  4. — Hos :  we  saw  yu  ansur.  yu  say  it  is 
imposible  to  agree  to  the  terms,  then  we  say  emphaticaly  yu  can  never 
redeem  yu  child  from  us.  yu  requested  a  more  siu-e  way  of  paying  yu 
money  for  yu  child  we  agreed  to  give  yu  a  satisfactory  way  which  would 
have  made  the  change  sure  and  safe  for  yu  and  safe  for  us,  the  way  we 
propounded  was  the  sure  test  of  your  sincerity  and  yu  answer  implies 
distinctly  that  yu  son  is  not  worth  that  amount  to  save  him,  yu  may  be 
entertaining  the  idea  that  if  the  money  is  not  paid  we  will  turn  him  loose, 
yu  wil  find  when  it  b  to  late  that  this  was  a  grate  mistake,  we  tel  yu 
plainly  and  positively  that  the  chjjnces  of  yu  ever  geting  yu  child  again  is 
ninety-nine  out  of  an  hundred  against  yu.  if  yu  do  not  redeem  him  he 
is  just  as  good  as  the  money  to  us  for  we  have  him  for  reference  though 
we  may  never  work  this  thing  in  this  country  again,  be  where  it  may 
we  have  the  Ros  child  to  show  that  we  do  about  what  we  say  when  we 
told  yu  your  child  should  stand  responsible  for  our  word  to  us  we  ment 
just  what  we  said  and  any  perfidy  on  yu  part  would  have  brought 
instant  death  on  his  head,  now  we  are  convinced  that  you  would  not 
keep  faith  with  us,  if  yu  could  violate  it  with  impunity  to  yu  child  and 
yet  we  do  not  blame  yu  for  that,  and  yet  do  yu  supose  that  we  would 
produce  the  child  and  hand  him  over  to  you  the  instant  yu  paid  the 
money  to  us.  the  thing  is  absurd  to  think  of  such  a  change,  we  are  not 
redy  yet  to  have  chains  put  on  us  for  life,  we  did  think  once  that  we 
might  effect  the  change  in  canidy  in  that  way,  but  we  find  that  cannot  be, 
for  yu  could  hold  us  there  on  robbery  and  extortion  until  yu  could  get 
us  here  and  then  yu  would  have  us  on  the  whole.  Mr.  Ros  the  way 
the  case  stands  now,  it  looks  as  if  yu  dont  want  tc  redeem  yu  child,  or 
at  least  yu  must  redeem  him  on  yu  own  terms.  That  is  impossible ; 
we  repeat  it,  that  is  absolutely  impossible.  If  yu  ever  get  him  from 
us,  and  we  are  sure  yu  never  will  get  him  from  any  other  than  us, 
yu  have  got  to  come  to  us  on  our  own  terms  and  our  terms  wil  be  more 
stringent  than  ever.  One  has  suggested  to  redeem  yu  child  with  coun- 
terfeit money ;  another  to  mark  all  the  money,  and  then  we  could  be 
traped  after  with  the  money.  We  say  if  yu  had  redeemed  yu  child 
with  counterfit  money,  or  with  money  privately  marked,  we  would  not 
restored  yu  child  till  yu  had  replace  the  marked  money  double-fold. 
A  woman  has  proposed  to  Tagget  to  produce  Charley  and  his  abductors 


LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  I43 

for  j^5,ooo.  This  will  be  by  far  the  cheapest  way  for  yu  to  git  yu  child, 
for  we  wil  never  restor  him  for  one  dollar  less  than  the  amount  we  first 
named,  when  we  found  out  yu  circumstances  was  not  good,  we  were 
goin  to  throw  ofiF  one-half  the  amount  an  accept  ^10,000  but  the  public 
have  raised  hell  so,  and  sympathised  for  yu  in  offring  such  large  rewards 
that  we  shall  have  the  whole  or  none,  but  they  took  good  care  in  offer- 
ing it  in  such  away  that  they  would  never  have  to  pay  one  dollar  of  it. 
if  they  ment  bisines  why  did  they  not  offer  so  much  for  the  child  and  so 
much  for  the  abductors,  the  reason  is  they  thought  one  or  the  other  re- 
wards might  have  to  be  paid,  but  we  dont  think  they  would  ever  have 
to  pay  a  dollar  for  either  child  or  us.  yu  wil  find  the  truth  of  this  in  the 
end  (if  i  no  myself).  Mr.  Ross  we  leave  the  city  to-night,  we  shal  not 
communicate  with  yu  any  more  unless  yu  can  satisfy  us  yu  want  to  re- 
deem yu  child  on  our  terms  which  wil  be  ^20,000  and  not  one  dollar 
less  and  it  must  be  paid  to  us  as  we  prescribe,  when  yu  receive  this  we 
shall  be  at  least  200  miles  from  here  we  leave  the  detectives  of  phila  and 
Mr  tagget  to  work  out  their  clues,  we  think  we  have  left  no  clues 
behind  us.  Charley  wil  remain  where  he  was  taken  the  second  night 
after  he  left  home,  if  Mr  tagget  can  find  a  clue  to  that  place  he  wil  no 
doubt  get  the  reward  we  have  no  feminines  into  that  place,  charley  will 
never  come  out  of  there,  it  shal  be  his  everlasting  tomb — unless  the 
ransom  brings  him  out.  we  are  not  destitute  of  a  few  dollars  yet,  charley 
shal  never  starve  to  death  if  death  it  must  be,  it  shal  come  upon  him  as 
instant  as  the  lightning  strock  itself.  Mr.  Ros,  if  you  have  anything  to  say 
to  us  it  must  be  through  the  personals  of  New  York  Herald,  we  can  see 
that,  where  ever  we  are  and  no  doubt  every  day,  we  shal  notice  nothing 
only  from  you.  no  matter  what  propositions  others  may  make  they  wil  re- 
ceive no  attention,  yu  say  the  action  must  be  symultanious  from  the  nature 
of  this  bisines  that  can  never  be,  so  that  ends  the  bisines  we  told  yu  in  10 
ours  after  the  receipt  of  mony  if  we  found  it  genuine,  and  not  secretly 
marked  al  up,  yu  would  then  get  yu  child  in  our  way  of  passing  him  over 
to  yu.  this  does  not  suit  yu  so  we  wil  leave  yu  to  yu  own  way  of  giting 
and  the  detectives  to  work  out  their  clues. 

In  this  letter,  the  abductors  say  that  unless  the  terms 
they  proposed  are  complied  with,  the  chances  are 
ninety- nine  out  of  a  hundred  against  me  ever  getting 
the  child,  and  that  it  is  too  absurd  to  think  that  they 
would  consent  to  a  simultaneous  exchange,  as  they  will 
not  run  the  risk  of  being  imprisoned  for  life. 


144  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

They  re-affirm  that  if  the  child  is  not  redeemed  by 
me,  they  will  kill  him,  and  refer  to  his  fate,  tliat  others 
may  know  that  they  will  execute  their  threats  should 
they  steal  another  child  ;  but  on  account  of  the  public 
feeling  that  has  been  aroused,  they  intimate  that  they 
will  not  attempt  it  again  in  this  country. 

They  say  they  once  thought  that  they  might  be  able 
to  effect  the  exchange  in  Canada,  but  find  that  they 
could  be  held  there  for  robbery  and  extortion,  and  be 
brought  back  to  the  United  States. 

They  notice  that  it  had  been  suggested  to  give  them 
counterfeit  and  marked  money,  and  add  that  if  I  at- 
tempted to  do  so,  the  child  would  be  held  until  two- 
fold the  amount  had  been  paid  to  them. 

They  mention  having  discovered  that  my  circum- 
stances are  not  what  they  supposed  them  to  be,  and 
that  they  had  thought  of  abating  one-half  of  the 
amount  of  the  ransom ;  but  since  the  public  had  be- 
come so  much  interested,  and  offered  so  large  a  reward, 
they  will  adhere  to  their  original  demand. 

They  again  say  that  the  reward  as  offered,  both  for 
their  arrest  and  the  recovery  of  the  child,  was  so  ar- 
ranged that  the  persons  offering  it  never  expected  to 
be  called  upon  to  pay  it,  as  it  would  be  impossible  either 
to  find  them  or  the  child. 

They  announce  their  intention  of  leaving  the  city  the 
same  night,  and  that  they  will  be  at  least  200  miles 
distant  by  the  time  their  letter  reaches  me ;  and  that 
they  will  not  write  to  me  again  unless  I  signify  that  I 
will  agree  to  their  terms.  They  sneeringly  advise  the 
detectives  to  run  out  their  clues,  claiming  that  they 
have  left  no  clues  behind  them  by  which  they  can  be 


LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  I45 

traced ;  and  declare  that  Charley  will  remain  where  he 
was  put  on  the  second  night  after  he  was  stolen,  and 
that  he  shall  not  starve  to  death,  but  if  killed,  his 
death  will  be  as  sudden  as  a  flash  of  lightning ;  and 
close  the  letter  by  informing  me  that  hereafter  any 
communication  that  I  may  wish  to  make  to  them,  shall 
be  through  the  medium  of  the  New  York  Herald. 

Notwithstanding  the  great  length  of  this  letter,  the 
careful  reader  will  observe  how  cautiously  every  step 
is  guarded,  and  how  tenaciously  the  kidnappers  hold  to 
every  advantage  already  secured.  There  was  no  way 
in  this  country  by  which  the  child  could  be  restored  at 
the  same  moment  that  the  money  was  paid,  without 
exposing  themselves  to  detection  and  the  consequent 
risks.  And  as  there  is  no  clause  in  the  extradition 
treaty  with  England,  covering  this  specific  offense,  they 
sought  to  find  out  whether  it  was  not  possible  to  offer 
terms  that  would  be  more  likely  to  be  accepted  in 
Canada.  But  they  found  out  that  if  they  should  be 
arrested  there,  they  could  be  demanded  on  the  charge 
of  robbery  and  extortion,  and  brought  to  the  United 
States  for  trial. 

When  I  discovered  that  the  abductors  had  thought 
of  effecting  the  change  in  the  British  Provinces,  and 
that  the  crime  of  kidnapping  was  not  included  in  the 
extradition  treaty  with  any  country,  I  wrote  to  Gen- 
eral Simon  Cameron,  chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Foreign  Relations,  (who  has  known  me  from  my  boy- 
hood,) suggesting  that  for  the  protection  of  the  people 
of  our  country  in  case  of  any  future  attempts  at 
stealing  children  for  the  purpose  of  extortion,  this 
crime  should  be  included  in  any  further  additions  to 
the  extradition  treaty,  and  received  the  following  reply: 
7 


146  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

Harrisburg,  August  J,  1874. 

Dear  Sir:  I  have  your  letter  of  the  31st,  and  will  remember  your 
suggestion,  if  any  treaty  is  made. 

We  have  all  heard  of  your  great  aiHiction,  and  I  assure  you  of  the 
deep  sympathy  of  my  family  and  myself.  Your  good  father  was  my 
friend  for  very  many  years.    Ko  purer  man  ever  lived,  &c.,  &c. 

I  trust  you  will  make  no  compromise  with  the  bad  people  who  have 
stolen  your  child.  Refuse  to  give  them  money,  and  they  will  have  no 
motive  for  retaining  the  boy.  God  will  protect  him.  If  you  pay  now, 
you  will  have  to  pay  again.  Canada  will  be  no  hiding-place  for  persons 
guilty  of  so  great  a  crime.  Only  see  that  the  police  of  your  city  do  their 
whole  duty,  and  they  will  bring  the  boy  home. 

Your  Friend,  Simon  Cameron. 

C.  K.  Ross,  Esq. 

The  public  were  clamorous  for  the  arrest  and  punish- 
ment of  the  kidnappers  at  any  cost,  yet  were  ignorant 
of  the  risk  to  the  life  of  my  child  and  consequent 
terror  to  which  I  was  subjected.  It  is  comparatively 
easy  to  sacrifice  another  man's  child  for  the  public 
good,  and  my  anxious  suspense  is  easier  conceived 
than  borne. 

Nearly  a  month  had  elapsed  without  getting  any 
trace  of  the  kidnappers  or  having  any  intelligence  of 
the  child,  except  that  which  was  revealed  in  the  letters, 
yet  everything  that  indicated  any  probability  of  shed- 
ding light  on  the  mystery  was  thoroughly  investigated. 

It  was  now  determined  that  no  answer  should  be 
made  to  the  last ,  letter,  but  patiently  to  wait  further 
developments.  This  patient  waiting  was  endured  for 
three  weeks  before  another  letter  reached  us,  and  in 
tlie  mean  time  some  vague  suspicion  pointing  to  the 
abductors  gradually  took  shape  in  the  eyes  of  the 
authorities,  which,  as  time  passed,  became  more  and 
more  definite,  the  details  of  which  will  be  reserved  for 
another  chapter. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

LETTERS   OF  SYMPATHY  AND   TRACING   OF  CHILDREN. 

HILE  this  cloud  of  sorrow  and  suffering  hung  so 
dark  over  our  household,  many  friends  visited 
Mrs.  Ross,  endeavoring  to  cheer  and  comfort 
her,  and  by  kindness  and  affectionate  sympathy  to  help 
her  bear  the  heavy  burden  which  in  the  inscrutable 
providence  of  God  had  been  laid  on  her. 

Time  does  much  to  assuage  affliction  caused  by  death; 
but  a  living  sorrow,  whose  burden  increases  day  by  day, 
who  can  bear? 

Many  strangers  from  the  city  and  various  parts  of 
the  Country,  moved  by  kindly  feelings,  called  on  us  with 
words  of  sympathy  and  many  proffers  of  aid.  The 
memory  of  these  expressions  of  sympathy  will  ever  be 
cherished  by  us.  With  all  our  bitter  experience  of  the 
evil  in  human  nature,  we  have  been  continually  reminded 
that  the  good  far  outweighs  it.  Many  letters  were  also 
received  from  all  parts  of  the  United  States,  and  from 
other  countries,  expressing  similar  feelings;  selections 
from  a  few  of  which  may  be  of  interest : 

Philips  County,  Arkansas,  1874. 

Christian  K.  Ross — Dear  Sir: — I  have  just  received  some  letters 
from  a  detective  agency,  stating  that  you  have  lost  one  of  your  little 
boys.  I  am  doing  all  I  possibly  can  to  get  some  clue  to  the  whereabouL" 
of  the  child.  It  is  hardly  probable  that  he  is  in  this  state;  but  it  is  sure 
he  is  somewhere,  and  if  every  one  will  do  his  duty,  he  will  be  found, 

(147) 


148  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

and  the  kidnappers  also.     I  know  how  to  sympathize  with  you  in  the 
loss.     It  would  be  better  to  know  he  is  dead  than  as  it  is. 

I  hope  you  will  remember  my  address,  and  just  as  soon  as  he  is 
recovered  (if  you  shall  be  so  fortunate  as  to  find  him)  let  me  know  the 
fact.  Yours  Respectfully. 

Hudson,  "Wisconsin. 

Christian  K.  Ross,  Esq. — My  Dear  Sir: — I  am  pained  to  know 
that  no  tidings  of  your  little  boy  have  yet  been  received.  This  whole 
community  is  touched  with  sympathy  for  you.  No  theme  is  introduced 
that  touches  so  sensitive  a  chord  in  the  hearts  of  all  the  people.  God 
grant  that  he  may  soon  be  restored  to  your  embrace,  is  the  prayer  of 
Yours  most  sincerely,  I.  S.  Moffat. 

The  same  gentleman  writes  again,  as  follows: 

My  Dear  Sir  : — I  have,  from  sympathy  in  your  bereavement,  come  to 
regard  you  as  a  near  friend.  Myself  and  family  watch  with  deep  inter- 
est everything  that  transpires  leading  to  the  recovery  of  the  child.  "We 
were  thrilled  with  the  notice  a  few  days  since  of  a  child  that  would 
probably  lead  to  his  recovery,  but  fear  it  has  turned  out  as  all  others 
have,  etc. 

A  gentleman  of  this  city  writes  as  follows : 

August  zgtht  i8T4. 

C.  K.  Ross — My  Dear  Sir: — Your  note  of  the  26th  insl.,  containing 
a  likeness  of  your  lost  boy,  reached  me  only  last  evening,  owing  to  a  mis- 
direction. I  take  the  earliest  opportunity  of  thanking  you  for  the  atten- 
tion, and  assure  you  I  shall  treasure  the  picture  as  that  of  an  adopted 
child. 

You  and  yours  may  rest  assured  that  your  cause  is  the  cause  of  the 
whole  land,  and  that  every  heart  will  be  open  and  every  hand  raised  to 
serve  in  it,  until  success  is  accomplished.       Very  sincerely  yours,  etc, 

A  gentleman  writes  thus  from  Boston,  Mass. : 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross — Dear  Sir: — I  believe  years  ago  I  did  business  with 
you.  Since  then  I  have  retired  from  active  business  life,  and  you  have 
my  heartfelt  sympathy  in  your  deep  affliction.  I  think  your  case  the 
hardest  I  ever  heard  of,  and  if  I  can  be  of  any  help  to  you,  I  will  be 
glad  to  aid  in  any  way  in  my  power.  If  you  should  issue  an  appeal 
to  the  press  of  the  United  States,  I  think  there  would  hardly  be  a  news- 
paper that  would  refuse  to  copy  your  card,  and  give  it  a  prominent 
place,  without  charge.     There  are  hundreds  of  families  that  do  not 


LETTERS   OF  SYMPATHY.  I49 

know  yet,  that  you  have  had  a  boy  stolen,  and  Charley  Ross  may  be 
living  next  door  to  some  of  them  and  they  not  know  it.  My  wife  and  I 
take  such  an  interest  in  the  case  that  I  feel  that  with  as  much  leisure  as 
I  have,  that  I  ought  in  the  cause  of  humanity  spend  some  of  it  in  helping 
you.  If  you  have  anything  in  the  way  of  guidance,  let  me  know,  and 
you  can  have  my  gratuitous  services. 

Yours  truly,  Samuel  T.  Holmes. 

This  letter  was  the  beginning  of  a  correspondence 
which  has  been  kept  up  to  the  present  time ;  and  Mr. 
Holmes  has  worked,  and  is  still  working,  in  endeavor- 
ing to  discover  the  child.  He  has  not  only  spent  his 
own  time  and  means,  but  has  also  employed  others;  and 
whenever  he  hears  of  anything  that  would  seem  to  shed 
light  on  the  mystery,  he  promptly  and  energetically 
follows  it  up  until  it  is  thoroughly  investigated. 

Many  other  letters  are  in  our  possession  from  citizens 
of  our  own  country,  expressing  similar  feelings;  but  the 
above  selections  will  suffice  to  show  how  wide-spread 
the  sympathy  extended.  A  few  letters  from  abroad 
will  serve  to  show  that  the  people  in  other  countries 
also  felt  a  similar  interest. 

A  lady  writes  thus  from  Scotland: 

Macduff,  Scotland,  1874, 
Mrs.  Ross — Madam  : — Some  time  ago  my  father,  who  is  Postmaster 
of  Macduff,  received  a  notice  of  the  abduction  of  your  son,  Charley 
Brewster  Ross.  We  felt  very  much  interested  in  him,  and  wished  we 
could  see  a  notice  in  any  of  the  papers,  but  heard  nothing  more  until  we 
saw  in  the  Aberdeen  Weekly  "  Free  Press,"  of  Friday  last,  an  advertise- 
naent  of  the  shooting  of  the  burglars,  said  to  be  those  who  had  stolen  your 
son.  My  father  and  mother  then  wished  me  to  write,  and  see  if  you 
would  kindly  let  us  know  if  your  boy  had  been  restored  to  you.  I  in- 
close an  addressed  envelope,  and  trust  you  will  favor  us  by  sending  a  reply. 
I  am  yours, . 

An  English  lady  writes  as  follows : 

Diss,  Norfolk  Co.,  England. 
Sir  : — We  have  not  been  able  to  obtain  any  tidings  of  your  darling 


150  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

boy,  of  whose  abduction  we  read  in  the  circular  we  received  some  time 
ago.  I  have  very  many  times  thought  of  you,  and  deeply  sj-mpathized 
with  you  in  the  loss  of  such  a  pet  as  his  photograph  represents  him,  and 
have  thought  of  writing  before  to  you.  May  I  ask  the  favor  of  a  line 
just  to  tell  us  if  you  have  found  him?  God  grant  that  he  may  have  been 
restored  to  you  ere  this,  or  if  not,  that  this  tr)-ing  dispensation  may  be 
sanctified  to  you  and  yours,  and  that  you  may  have  strength  given  you  to 
bear  it,  and  that  you  may  meet  your  darling  where  "  Thieves  do  not 
break  through  nor  steal."  Pardon  me  for  writing  to  you,  a  stranger ; 
but  my  husband  and  self  were  so  much  affected  on  receipt  of  the  circular. 
Accept  our  united  kind  and  sympathetic  regards. 

I  am  yours  respectfully, . 

The  same  lady  writes  a  second  letter,  which  is  so  ex- 
pressive of  kindness  that  I  feel  constrained  to  make  a 
few  extracts  from  it 

Post  Office,  Diss.,  England. 
Dear  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ross: — I  thank  you  very  much  for  the  letter 
written  by  your  nephew.  I  was  very  much  disappointed  that  you  had 
not  heard  of  your  lost  darling  boy,  and  I  have  many  times  thought  of 
him  and  you,  and  earnestly  prayed  that  he  might  some  day  be  restored 
to  you  unhurt.  With  this  letter  I  post  you  a  Diss  paper,  with  a  piece 
in  it  about  the  dear  boy.  My  husband  was  looking  at  the  paper,  and 
his  eye  caught  the  name  of  Charley  Ross.  We  felt  quite  as  pleased  to 
read  it  as  though  we  had  known  him  and  you  personally.  I  am  very 
anxious  to  know  if  you  have  learned  any  truthful  tidings,  or  better  still, 
if  he  is  home  again.  God  grant  that  it  may  be  so.  May  I  ask  the  favor 
of  a  line  from  you  as  soon  as  you  can  give  me  the  intelh'gence.  I  thank 
you  very  much  for  his  photograph,  which  I  have  placed  in  my  album, 
and  pnze  it  very  much,  for  as  soon  as  I  had  your  first  communication,  I 
felt  to  love  the  dear  child — he  does  look  so  lovable,  etc.,  etc.  My  hus- 
band unites  with  me  in  kind  regards  to  you  both,  with  the  earnest  prayer 
that  your  darling  (if  not  yet  home)  may  be  very  soon.  Please  give  him 
a  kiss  for  me,  tho*  a  stranger. 

I  am  yours  very  sincerely, 

A  gentleman  of  Filey,  England,  writes  as  follows : 

KiNGSHEET,  Filey,  England. 
Mr.  C.  K.  'Ros,s—Dear  Sir:—1  have  heard  of  the  sad  affair  that  has 
happened  to  you,  in  the  abduction  of  your  dear  little  boy  Charley.    A 


LETTERS    OF   SYMPATHY.  I5I 

poli  :eman  has  presented  me  with  his  photograph,  which  very  much  re- 
sembles a  darling  of  ours  we  called  Walter,  who  was  buried  last  year, 
aged  four  years,  etc.,  etc. 

I  do  hope  that  by  some  means  you  will  at  least  know  what  has  become 
of  the  dear  little  fellow.  What  a  heartless,  nay,  inhuman  thing  to  entice 
him  away  from  his  home.  I  trust  that  a  retributive  Providence  will  bring 
them  to  justice.  I  deeply  sympathize  with  you  because  your  name  is 
Ross.  Yours  truly,  . 

One  of  the  most  touching  incidents  that  occurred 
since  our  dear  Httle  boy  was  stolen,  is  related  by  a  phy- 
sician in  the  following  letter,  which  is  addressed  to  a 

brother  of  Mrs.  Ross. 

Baltimore,  May  30th ^  ^j^. 

My  Dear  Friend  Henry  Lewis  — I  remember  you  once  told  me 
that  many  curious  incidents  connected  with  the  search  for  CHARLEY  Ross 
constituted  a  remarkable  record,  and  I  judged  up  to  that  time  a  record  had 
been  kept.  If  such  is  the  case,  and  you  desire  to  add  another,  which  is 
probably  as  singular  as  any,  I  have  pleasure  in  communicating  the 
following : 

Some  time  since  I  visited  a  hospital  for  insane  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Baltimore,  and  in  passing  a  room,  I  heard  the  name  of  Charley  Ross, 
which  was  several  times  repeated.  Upon  asking  my  attendant  to  allow 
me  to  enter  the  apartment,  I  found,  on  doing  so,  a  vigorous  man  of  say 
forty  years  of  age,  who  was  so  maniacal,  that  he  was  secured  to  his  seat; 
and  he  reached  his  hands  convulsively  towards  me,  and  cried  "I  am 
Charley  Ross!  I  am  Charley  Ross!  take  me!  take  me!"  He  re- 
peated this  almost  constantly. 

I  don't  know  whether  this  will  add  to  your  budget  any  interest;  but  it 
affected  me  in  this  way.  Here  is  a  maniac,  (he  was  from  Washington, 
D.  C.,)  who  raves  and  moans  in  the  gloomy  cell  of  a  lunatic  asylum,  and 
the  only  living  thought  that  seems  to  possess  him,  is  that  of  a  lost  child 
and  bereaved  parents.  It  shows  th'e  depth  of  human  sympathy  not  only; 
out  the  persistent  expression  of  it  to  such  a  degree,  that  the  man  con- 
ceives himself  to  be  the  lost  one,  and  implores  to  be  taken  home.  Do 
you  ever  think  of  having  a  history  prepared  of  this  whole  matter  when 
the  proper  time  comes  ?     It  seems  to  me  good  might  come  from  it. 

Yours  sincerely,  Joseph  Parrish. 

These  few  letters  have  been  selected  from  among  a 


152  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

large  number  which  are  alike  in  expressions  of  sympa* 
thy,  and  manifest  the  interest  which  strangers  felt  for 
the  recovery  of  the  child,  wherever  the  circumstances 
of  his  abduction  became  known.  Other  letters  proceed 
from  motives  wholly  different. 

Scarcely  had  three  days  passed  after  Charley  was 
taken,  before  attempts  were  made  to  extort  money  by 
false  information,  and  by  blackmailing.  Many  letters 
have  been  received  from  persons  professing  to  know 
where  Charley  was,  and  stating  that  for  a  considera- 
tion, information  would  be  given  that  would  lead  to  his 
recovery.  These  letters  are  generally  anonymous,  or 
signed  with  fictitious  names,  and  request  answers 
through  the  newspapers  of  various  cities.  All  were 
replied  to  ;  but  in  only  a  few  cases  was  the  correspond- 
ence continued,  or  the  writers  discovered. 

As  early  as  the  3d  of  July,  a  man  who  had  seen  my 
advertisement  in  the  newspapers,  called  at  my  place  of 
business,  and  stated  that  he  had  found  Charley  on  the 
night  of  the  ist  of  July  near  the  water  works,  and  put 
him  on  the  street  car,  paid  his  fare,  and  instructed  the 
conductor  to  let  him  off  at  the  Germantown  depot.  He 
gave  the  name  of  the  company  in  whose  employ  he 
said  he  was  ;  but  insisted  he  should  be  paid  for  his  loss 
of  time  and  expense  in  coming  to  give  the  information. 
This  he  was  refused ;  but  was  told  if  his  report  was 
found  to  be  correct,  he  would  be  properly  remunerated. 
Upon  inquiry,  he  was  found  to  b.e  a  tramp,  who  had 
taken  this  plan  to  get  a  petty  sum  of  money. 

A  few  days  afterwards,  a  young  man  called  and  re- 
ported that  he  had  seen  a  man,  with  a  child  answering 
the  description  of  Charley,  get  on  one  of  the  street 


LETTERS    OF   SYMPATHY.  153 

cars.  This  story  seemed  so  plausible,  that  my  brother 
had  the  superintendent  of  the  line  question  every  con- 
ductor, and  found  that  no  person  answering  the  de- 
scription had  been  on  the  cars  during  the  day  stated. 
This  fellow  came  back  to  get  the  reward,  and  when 
accused  of  making  a  false  report,  acknowledged  that  he 
had  made  up  the  story,  in  the  expectation  of  being  paid 
for  it.  He  plead  hard  not  to  be  locked  up,  saying, 
"You  can  do  anything  you  want  to  me,  only  let  me  go." 

The  following  letters  were  also  received,  which  were 
evidently  intended  to  be  a  scheme  of  black-mailing,  but 
which  was  never  fully  carried  out. 

St.  Louis,  August  rj,  1874. 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir  : — If  you  have  got  five  thousand  dollars 
you  can  get  your  boy.  He  is  here  in  my  possession,  living  on  a  small 
farm,  and  has  been  here  for  two  w^eeks ;  he  was  sent  here  by  a  friend  of 
mine  for  safe  keeping ;  but  to  tell  you  the  fact,  I  am  tired  of  the  job,  and 
my  friend  is  afraid  to  come  after  him.  If  you  conclude  to  accept  the  terms, 
advertise  in  the  personals  of  the  Missouri  Republican,  of  this  city ;  let  the 
words  be,  M.  B.,  Proposition  Accepted,  and  put  your  name  to  it,  and 
then  I  will  write  to  you  again  in  confidence. 

Yours,  etc.,  M.  B. 

P.  S. — ^Your  boy  is  well  and  happy,  but  I  am  tired  of  him;  don't  for- 
get to  advertise,  and  don't  forget  that  this  is  confidential. 

The  advertisement  was  published  in  the  personal 
column  of  the  St.  Louis  newspaper : 

M.  B. — Proposition  accepted  :  send  photograph  or  other  proof. 

And  the  following  reply  was  received : 

C.  K.  Ross. — I  have  written  to  my  friend,  and  cannot  at  present  send 
you  photograph  as  I  intended  to  do:  if  no  interference  by  the  detectives, 
you  shall  have  positive  proof,  (photograph  and  accurate  description,)  in 
ten  days,  provided  my  friend  agrees  to  the  proposition.  He  cannot 
leave  your  city  at  present;  you  can  guess  the  reason.  CHARLEY  is  well, 
and  doing  as  well  as  any  boy  can  do.  M.  B. 

7* 


154  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

P.  S  — Keep  quiet  about  this,  and  all  shall  be  well.  If  I  had  my  way 
about  it,  he  should  be  sent  to  you  without  one  cent.  I  am  your  friend  ; 
but  I  am  in  the  power  of  others.  Any  way  that  I  can  assist  you,  with- 
out danger  to  myself,  I  will  do  it.  M.  B. 

Nothing  more  was  heard  from  M.  B.,  and  the  con- 
clusion arrived  at  was  that  he  could  not  send  any  proof 
that  he  had  the  child,  and  was,  of  course,  unable  to 
carry  out  his  nefarious  scheme. 

Another  attempt  at  swindling  is  as  follows : 

New  Y«»rk,  July  i6,  1874. 

Christian  K.  Ross,  Esq. — Sir: — I  will  give  the  address  of  one  of 
the  parties  connected  with  the  kidnapping  of  your  boy,  if  you  agree  to 
send  me  ^^150  (half  the  reward)  and  the  other  half  if  your  son  be  found 
through  the  information  which  I  am  sure  it  is  in  my  power  to  procure. 
The  party  to  whom  I  refer  is  now  in  New  York  city.  His  hair  is  of  a 
lightish  auburn  hue,  his  figure  is  rather  commanding,  and  the  mustache 
and  full  whiskers  he  used  to  wear  are  all  cut  off  to  a  narrow  goatee.  He 
wears  a  brown  straw  hat,  narrow  rim,  and  ring  with  a  rose  cut  on  a  gar- 
net  on  his  little  finger  (right  hand).  He  seems  to  have  plenty  of  money, 
is  at  intervals  an  inveterate  gambler — and  I  have  met  him  four  or  five 
different  times  in  New  York.  If  you  send  me  the  means,  I  shall  go  on 
to  Philadelphia  and  work  out  whatever  clues  I  can  get,  and  those  I  now 
have.  It  is  puzzling  to  me  that  the  police  have  not  yet  got  your  boy,  for 
he  is  in  your  city,  and  the  principal  in  the  kidnapping  is  a  gambler,  and 
by  no  means  unknown  to  Kenn.ird  H.  Jones  himself. 

The  real  name  of  the  party  here  Ls  Frank  Rankin,  a  native  of  Chicago. 

If  you  are  disposed  to  accept  my  proposition,  please  answer  at  once,  and 

I  shall  proceed  to  Philadelphia  with  as  little  delay  as  possible.     The 

police  will  have  to  acknowledge  our  man  when  he  is  found.     I  am,  sir. 

Very  Truly,  . 

My  nephew,  on  receipt  of  the  above  letter,  went  to 
New  York,  and  representing  me,  called  at  the  house 

named  ;  but  did  not  find  a  person  named . 

He  learned  that  a  man  whose  real  name  was  James 
Knox,  lived  there,  but  was  not  at  home;  and  suspecting 
that  he  was  the  writer  of  the  letter,  left  a  note  for  him, 
to  which  the  following  reply  was  received  : 


1^. 


LETTERS    OF    SYMPATHY.  I55 

New  York. 
(Frank?)  C.  K.  Ross — Dear  Sir  : — I  will  be  at  home  to-morrow 
at  2  p.  m.     The  letter  you  left  for  me  was  in  mistake  sent  to  Mr.  James 

Knox,  of street,  who  used  to  room  with  me  here.     I  have  net 

seen  Rankin  since,  but  shall  do  all  I  can  to-night. 

Yours,  very  truly,  . 

My  nephew,  calling  at  the  house  the  next  day,  re- 
ceived the  following  note : 

Frank  Ross,  Esq. — I  cannot  nnd  Rankin ;  therefore  there  will  be 
no  use  in  seeing  you  for  the  present. . 

This  note  satisfied  him  that  the  fellow  avoided  an  in- 
terview, and  that  his  design  was  to  get  one  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars,  if  he  could,  by  the  story  he  had  made  up. 

In  the  early  period  of  the  case,  a  number  of  similar 
schemes  of  extortion  were  attempted,  none  of  which 
however  were  successful.  Subsequently,  several  well- 
concocted  plans  were  laid  for  various  purposes,  which 
involved  considerable  labor  and  expense  before  we  were 
able  to  determine  their  designs.  These  will  be  given 
in  the  order  of  time. 

A  class  of  notes  and  letters  was  received,  prompted 
apparently  by  no  motive  other  than  a  desire  to  add  to 
the  anguish  already  inflicted,  and  wantonly  to  torture 
without  any  apparent  aim.  The  following  selections 
are  given : 

New  York,  Jtdy  20,  1874. 

Chief  of  Police — Sir : — You  seem  in  such  a  hurry  to  get  Charley 
Ross  that  you  are  overworking  yourself  for  nothing.  Now,  my  pal  and 
me  will  not  enter  the  lion's  mouth,  as  you  may  well  suppose ;  but  if  Mr. 
Ross  don't  fork  over  that  ^20,000  mighty  quick,  he  will  have  a  corpse 
in  a  coffin  instead  of  Charley  Ross.  So  you  just  tell  him  to  hurry  up, 
or  he  will  have  what  I  said  he  would.  One  of  the  Abductors. 

Philadelphia,  Friday ^  July  24,  1874. 

Chief  of  Police. — Sir  : — I  know  the  party  who  has  the  Ross  child. 
They  are  resolved  not  to  come  to  terms  unless  Mr.  Ross  agrees.      (They 


156  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

will  though.)  He  (the  boy)  is  uninjured ;  but  he  goes  on  so  about  his 
parents,  that  I  pity  him.  I  cannot  tell  more ;  but  I  can  lead  you  on  his 
track.  Keep  this  close  for  a  time.  One  of  the  men  had  his  picture 
taken  two  months  ago  in  a  gallery  on  Ridge  Avenue.  Dark  sandy 
hair;  darkish  complexion;  dark  striped  pants;  reddish-brown  whiskers; 
slight — I  will  tell  no  more.  Tell  Mr.  Ross  not  to  give  the  money — 
they  are  getting  tired  of  keeping  the  boy.  I  will  do  all  I  can ;  don't 
betray  me.  Salue. 

P.  S. — Your  reward  has  scared  them,  and  they  are  going  to  lake  him 
out  of  town  :  watch  every  covered  farm  wagon  leaving  town  from  this 
date.  Tell  Mr.  Ross  he  has  a  friend  here ;  he  don't  know  me,  but  I 
know  him;  and  while  I  am  here  the  child  shall  not  suffer.  S. 

Philadelphia,  September  j8,  1874. 

Mr.  Ross  : — Your  boy  is  alive  ;  he  is  nearer  than  you  have  any  idea, 
1  would  cheerfully  come  forward  and  testify  to  some  very  important 
p6ints ;  but  am  afraid  of  the  consequences.  My  object  in  writing  you  is 
a  desire  on  my  part  to  befriend  you,  to  console  you,  by  giving  you  the 
above  information,  based  on  a  partial  knowUdge  of  certain  transactions. 
Have  patience  and  hope.     I  will  see  what  can  be  done.         W.  B.  C. 

Philadf.lphia,  July  sth,  iSys- 
Mr.  Mayor — Dear  Sir: — Your  city  papers  seem  to  trouble  them- 
selves a  good  deal  about  Charley  Ross.  He  is  not  in  New  York  as 
they  say,  and  will  not  be  restored  as  soon  as  you  think.  I  have  been 
here  two  weeks  and  I  hear  the  talk,  but  the  money  must  be  paid  down 
by  one  of  the  city  officers,  and  he  must  be  alone,  and  meet  me  (Miss  E. 
or  Mr.  C.)  and  the  meeting  must  be  m  the  depth  of  night.  You  will 
know  when  and  where,  that  is  if  nothing  happens.  I  can  say  no  more, 
but  I  must  \fi.  off  this  afternoon  to  see  how  the  nigger  treats  him  while  I 
am  away.  Miss  E.  " 

Mr.  Ross. — You  need  not  spend  any  more  money  to  get  Charley, 
for  he  is  sleeping  soundly  in  his  grave ;  so  the  whole  matter  is  over,  and 
you  need  not  think  to  catch  us,  for  we  will  go  to  Eirrope.  Had  you 
paid  the  money  you  would  have  had  your  boy  alive;  now  it  is  too  late. 
We  are  satisfied,  and  hope  you  are  also.  If  you  want  to  know  any- 
thing further,  advertise  in  the  Public  Ledger  and  you  will  receive  an 
answer  from  us.  We  want  ten  thousand  dollars  to  tell  where  he  is ;  but 
he  is  dead,  and  not  a  very  long  time.  The  detectives  were  near  his 
place,  and  we  killed  him.  Let  no  tears  drop  from  your  eyes ;  why  did 
you  not  mind  us  ?  No  Signature. 


LETTERS   OF   SYMPATHY.  1 5/ 

None  of  these  parties  were  ever  traced  or  heard  from 
afterwards,  and  although  these  letters,  as  well  as  many 
others  of  a  similar  kind,  were  anonymous  and  disguised, 
yet  the  effect  of  them  was  to  add  poignancy  to  the  sor- 
row that  we  were  already  enduring. 

During  the  first  two  weeks  after  the  abduction, 
scarcely  a  day  passed  without  information  from  some 
part  of  the  country,  either  by  telegraph  or  mail,  of  chil- 
dren in  the  possession  of  suspicious  persons,  or  who  had 
been  brought  into  villages  and  cities,  and  abandoned. 
Every  case  presented  to  us  was  investigated  until  we 
became  satisfied  that  it  had  no  reference  to  Charley. 
Many  cases  reported  were  very  quickly  sifted,  while 
others  required  patience  and  caution,  with  a  vast 
amount  of  labor  and  expense,  before  a  conclusion  could 
be  reached.  One  of  the  most  difficult  and  prolonged  of 
these  was  reported  very  soon  after  the  abduction. 

Near  a  village  in  one  of  the  Western  States,  there 
lived  a  family  who  were  looked  upon  by  their  neighbors 
with  suspicion,  because  their  house  was  known  to  be 
frequented  by  strangers  who  mysteriously  appeared  and 
disappeared.  Shortly  after  Charley  was  stolen,  a  man, 
formerly  of  this  city,  with  a  woman  and  two  children, 
came  to  the  village,  and  made  their  home  with  this 
family.  The  movements  of  these  people  gave  rise  to  a 
belief  by  many  living  near  that  something  was  wrong. 
After  watching  them,  and  getting  all  information  possi- 
ble, the  conclusion  was  reached  that  the  persons  from 
Philadelphia  were  concerned  in  the  abduction  of  my 
little  boy,  and  that  one  of  the  children  with  them  was 
Charley  himself  Their  surmises  were  communicated 
to  us,  with  the  names  of  the  parties  who  had  resided  in 


158  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Philadelphia.  Our  informant  was  requested  to  follow 
the  matter  up  in  that  place,  and  write  us  all  the  partic- 
ulars that  transpired,  and  if  possible  get  a  picture  of 
the  child.  At  the  same  time  we  began  to  make  inquiry 
here  to  find  out  the  character  and  habits  of  the  man 
from  Philadelphia  while  he  lived  there,  as  well  as  the 
name  of  the  woman  who  went  away  with  him,  also  to 
whom  the  children  with  them  belonged. 

Our  inquiries  resulted  in  discovering  that  this  man 
had  left  the  city,  with  the  woman,  the  night  my  little  son 
was  abducted.  Every  letter  received  from  our  western 
informant  seemed  to  add  new  evidence  that  we  were 
about  to  reach  the  object  of  our  search.  Frequent  night 
journeys  were  reported  as  being  made  by  the  parties  to 
and  from  neighboring  towns  ;  in  their  conversation  they 
were  heard  to  say  that  they  expected  soon  to  come  into 
possession  of  a  large  sum  of  money.  They  announced 
that  they  were  going  in  a  certain  direction,  but  would 
start  off  in  a  directly  opposite  one.  Strangers  visited 
the  house  at  night,  and  went  away  early  in  the  morning; 
and  the  fact  that  they  had  with  them  a  child  of  about 
the  same  age  as  Charley,  and  answering  in  some  re- 
spects to  his  description,  with  many  other  suspicious 
circumstances,  tended  to  confirm  the  impression  that 
they  were  concerned  in  concealing,  if  not  in  taking  the 
child. 

The  sheriff  and  district  attorney  of  the  county  were 
made  acquainted  with  these  circumstances  by  our  in- 
formant, and  the  person  from  Philadelphia  was  placed 
under  arrest.  The  officers  telegraphed  that  the  arrest 
was  made,  and  inquired  what  further  should  be  done. 
A  picture  oftlie  child  was  ordered  to  be  taken,  and  the 


LETTERS    OF    SYMPATHY.  1 59 

man  to  be  detained  until  it  could  be  determined  whether 
the  suspicions  were  correct  or  not.  When  the  photo- 
graph was  received,  a  telegram  was  immediately  re- 
turned that  the  child  was  not  Charley  Ross.  But  the 
people  were  still  not  satisfied;  some  believing  that  a 
wrong  picture  had  been  forwarded  to  us,  others  that 
another  child  had  been  substituted  and  that  the  true 
one  had  been  secretly  conveyed  away.  The  authorities 
declined  to  release  their  prisoner,  and  held  him  for  trial. 
When  tried,  he  was  discharged  for  want  of  evidence 
against  him.  Yet  those  living  near  were  even  then 
skeptical,  and  a  continual  watch  was  kept  on  the  sus- 
pected house  and  family.  Every  little  circumstance 
was  closely  scanned,  and  the  very  plausible  theory  was 
suggested  that  there  had  been  with  the  suspected  per- 
sons another  child,  who  had  been  sent  to  a  confederate 
in  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  the  possible  writer  of  the  letters  to 
me  from  that  city,  signed  M.  B.  Thus  when  suspicio,ns 
are  awakened  a  hundred  circumstances  will  be  found  to 
confirm  them.  While  the  matter  was  being  investigated 
by  the  authorities  here,  and  the  people  and  authorities 
in  the  county  where  these  events  occurred,  the  Pinker- 
ton  detective  agency  was  employed  to  aid  in  unraveling 
the  mystery  of  the  abduction,  and  to  search  for  the 
parties.  They  heard  of  this  trail,  and  after  thoroughly 
investigating  it  reached  the  conclusion  that  the  parties 
under  surveillance  were  in  no  way  connected  with  this 
crime.  This  case  was  very  protracted,  having  required 
several  months  to  arrive  at  a  definite  conclusion;  in 
fact  many  of  the  people  in  the  locality  still  believe  that 
these  parties  have  the  child,  as  several  letters  recently 
received  indicate. 


l6o  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

Not  only  were  we  in  constant  communication  by 
letter  with  the  district  attorney,  sheriff,  and  other  per 
sons  living  there,  but  by  the  kindness  and  generosit) 
of  Mr.  James  Merrihew,  superintendent  of  the  Western 
Union  Telegraph  Company,  the  use  of  a  wire  was  freely 
and  cheerfully  accorded  to  us,  and  we  were  thus  put  into 
direct  communication  with  the  parties,  and  enabled  to 
converse  fully  with  them.  I  feel  great  pleasure  in  say- 
ing that  the  officers  of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
Company,  from  the  time  of  the  first  public  notice  of  the 
taking  away  of  Charley,  have  felt  a  deep  interest  in  the 
matter,  and  have  afforded  me  every  facility  in  running 
out  supposed  clues,  and  in  getting  information  when  it 
was  desired  to  have  it  speedily.  Often  by  the  use  of 
the  wires  they  have  ended  a  suspense  which  otherwise 
would  have  lasted  days  or  weeks,  and  frequently  have 
given  us  the  control  of  a  wire  for  a  whole  day,  and  even 
longer  when  necessary ;  sometimes  running  a  circuit  of 
two  thousand  miles.  Night  or  day,  they  have  always 
cheerfully  telegraphed  our  questions,  and  interested  the 
operators  at  the  various  stations  to  help  us  in  getting 
satisfactory  replies. 

I  should  be  ungrateful  did  I  not  thus  publicly  ac- 
knowledge my  indebtedness  to  Mr.  James  Merrihew, 
superintendent  of  the  line  in  Philadelphia,  to  Mr.  Heber 
C.  Robinson,  manager,  and  to  Messrs.  Porter  and  Zcblin, 
chief  operators,  who  have  always  so  cordially  and  cheer- 
fully greeted  me  upon  entering  the  office,  that  really  it 
is  a  pleasure  for  me  to  go  to  them  with  anything  that 
I  desire  to  have  decided  quickly.  Many  children  sup- 
posed to  resemble  my  little  son  were  traced  up  in 
a  very  short  time  by  the  facility  afforded  in  the  use  of 


LETTERS   OF   SYMPATHY.  l6l 

the  telegraph  lines,  and  the  expense  of  long  journeys 
often  avoided.  Theso  gentlemen  have  become  so  famil- 
iar with  the  details  of  the  case  that  they  frequently 
examined  matters  relating  to  it,^vhich  were  brought  to 
their  notice  through  the  medium  of  the  Associated  Press, 
before  I  had  the  least  knowledge  of  them. 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting  instance  of  a  child  re- 
ported to  us  as  being  our  Charley,  occurred  in  one  of 
the  Southern  States;  interesting  because  the  child  was 
rescued  from  an  irresponsible  woman,  not  his  mother, 
who  was  neglecting  him,  and  adopted  by  those  who 
love  him,  and  intend  to  care  for  him  as  one  of  their  own 
children.  It  would  afford  me  much  pleasure  to  give  a 
full  history  of  this  case;  but  for  prudential  reasons  I 
shall  be  confined  to  a  mere  statement  of  the  circum- 
stances, suppressing  the  names  of  the  persons  interested, 
and  the  name  of  the  place  in  which  they  live.  The 
child's  photograph  represents  him  to  be  one  of  the 
handsomest  children  among  the  many  whose  portraits 
we  have  received.  He  has  a  bright,  cheerful  expression, 
full  round  face,  clear  complexion,  and  large,  blue  eyes, 
the  very  picture  of  health. 

The  first  information  we  had  of  this  child  was  by 
telegraph  as  follows: 

I  believe  officers  here  nave  Charley  Ross  ;  resemblance  to  picture 
very  striking,  except  hair  is  cut.  He  said  his  name  was  Charley  Ross  ; 
but  if  his  mamma  knew  it  she  would  whip  him. 

Upon  receipt  of  this  telegram,  we  put  ourselves  in 
direct  communication  through  the  telegraph  with  the 
child,  and  asked  him  many  questions,  to  some  of  which 
his  answers  were  correct.  To  the  question  asked  the 
child,  "What  he  and  his  brother  Walter  played  in?" 


1 62  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

he  answered,  "  a  swing  machine."  Such  a  machine  is 
in  our  yard,  in  which  the  children  swung.  Joseph  W. 
Lewis,  Mrs.  Ross's  brother,  determined  to  go  to  see 
him.  Before  leaving,  he  requested  the  Chief  of  Police 
of  the  place  to  write  the  full  particulars,  and  to  send  a 
photograph  of  the  child.  From  the  letter  received, 
the  following  information  was  obtained :  That  a  woman 
who  formerly  had  resided  in  the  place  had  recently  re- 
turned, bringing  with  her  a  small  boy  whom  she  repre- 
sented to  some  persons  as  her  own  child,  and  to  others 
as  an  adopted  child.  It  was  asserted  that  the  woman 
maltreated  the  child  to  such  a  degree  that  the  neigh- 
bors observed  it,  and  threatened  her  with  punishment 
if  she  did  not  desist.  The  attention  of  the  police  was 
called  to  the  matter,  and  suspicions  were  awakened  that 
the  child  did  not  belong  to  her,  and  was  no  other  than 
the  lost  Charley  Ross.  She  was  placed  under  arrest, 
and  the  child  taken  in  charge  by  one  of  the  citizens  of 
the  place.  When  examined,  she  told  contradictory 
stories,  which  confirmed  the  people  in  the  belief  that  he 
was  our  little  boy.  As  soon  as  it  was  noised  abroad 
in  the  town  that  Charley  Ross  was  supposed  to  be 
there,  intense  excitement  prevailed.  And  when  it  be- 
came known  that  a  relative  of  the  lost  child  was  on  his 
way  to  the  place,  the  railroad  depot  was  thronged  with 
people  anxiously  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  train. 
Every  one  was  hopeful  that  the  little  fellow  would  prove 
to  be  the  real  Charley.  When  Mr.  Lewis  arrived,  he 
was  quickly  driven  to  the  house  where  the  child  was, 
and  found  him  bearing  no  resemblance  to  the  lost  one. 
Disappointed,  he  returned,  first  sending  the  telegram 
home,  "  Wrong."     Many  persons  did  not  think  he  took 


LETTERS    OF    SYMPATHY.  163 

sufficient  time  to  determine  the  matter,  and  I  received 
a  number  of  letters  after  he  left  the  place,  saying  that 
he  could  not  have  decided  correctly  without  a  longer 
examination,  and  that  he  did  not  stop  long  enough  to 
ask  the  child  any  questions.  It  should  however  be 
known,  that  Charley's  uncle  had  seen  him  almost 
daily  from  the  time  he  was  born,  and  that  compara- 
tively a  short  time  had  elapsed  since  the  child  had  been 
taken  from  his  home. 

As  soon  as  it  was  decided  that  the  child  was  not  my 
little  boy,  efforts  were  made  by  the  citizens  to  take  him 
from  the  woman  ;  but  it  was  found  it  could  not  be 
done,  as  she  had  in  the  meantime  received  a  certificate, 
which  stated  that  the  child  had  been  transferred  to  her 
husband  the  preceding  March  by  a  person  living  in 
Richmond.  This  paper  gave  them  a  legal  right  to  the 
child,  and  they  could  not  be  dispossessed  of  it  unless 
by  their  voluntary  consent. 

A  gentleman  residing  in  the  town,  who  was  attracted 
by  the  child,  and  had  become  interested  in  him,  at  once 
enteVed  into  negotiations  with  the  woman  for  a  transfer 
of  their  rights  to  him.  Before,  however,  consummat- 
ing positive  arrangements,  he  obtained  a  history  of  the 
child  as  far  as  these  people  were  able  to  give  it,  and 
endeavored  to  find  his  parents.  Failing  to  trace  him 
further  back  than  the  person  who  gave  him  to  them, 
he  gave  the  woman  and  her  husband  one  thousand 
dollars,  and  obtained  a  legal  transfer  of  the  boy  to 
hin^self  I  have  since  received  several  letters  from  the 
gentleman,  who  expresses  himself  and  family  as  de- 
lighted with  their  little  Charley,  and  we  are  happy  in 
the  knowledge  that  the  poor  little  fellow,  who  was  sup- 


164  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

posed  to  be  our  Charley,  has  found  such  good  foster- 
parents. 

Another  case  of  more  than  ordinary  interest  was 
brought  to  our  knowledge  about  the  same  time.  The 
following  telegram  was  received  by  our  Mayor : 

GOSHKN,  N.  Y. 
Mayor  of  Philadelphia. — There  is  a  child  here  I  believe  to  be 
Charley  Ross;  have  had  his  likeness  taken  and  sent  to  Christian  K. 
Ross  by  letter  yesterday.  James  W.  Hovt, 

Sheriff  Orange  Co.,  N.  Y, 

The  letter  of  the  sheriff  with  the  picture  came  to 
hand,  and  an  answer  was  returned,  saying,  "  Not  my 
son."  A  few  days  afterward,  a  gentleman  of  this  city 
brought  a  stranger  to  see  me,  and  introduced  him  as 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Kenny,  late  of  Havana,  Cuba.  Mr. 
Kenny  stated  that  while  he  was  in  Washington  City, 
he  heard  that  there  had  been  a  great  excitement  in 
Goshen,  N.  Y.,  about  a  child  he  had  left  there  in  charge 
of  a  friend  of  his.  I  told  him  that  the  people  in  the 
village  had  supposed  he  was  my  little  boy,  and  that  the 
sheriff  had  sent  me  a  picture  of  the  child ;  but  that  I 
had  written  to  him  that  he  was  not  my  son.  Mr. 
Kenny  showed  me  a  photograph  like  the  one  sent  me 
from  Goshen.  He  then  related  the  following  history 
of  the  case : 

He  said  that  he  was  an  American  missionary  of  the 
Episcopal  Church  in  Cuba.  One  day  while  walking 
through  a  suburb  of  Havana  his  attention  was  attracted 
by  the  cries  of  a  child ;  upon  entering  a  tent,  whence  the 
sound  proceeded,  he  saw  a  woman  having  a  heavy  leath- 
er strap,  to  which  was  attached  a  large  buckle ;  with  this 
she  was  whipping  a  child,  who  was  marked  with  welts, 
and  great  drops  of  blood  were  running  down  from  the 


LETTERS   OF   SYMPATHY.  1 6$ 

wounds  inflicted  by  the  buckle.  He  remonstrated  with 
the  woman,  who  was  rude  and  defiant ;  and  noticing  the 
fchild  more  particularly,  he  observed  that  his  complex- 
ion was  much  more  fair  than  that  of  the  woman  (who 
was  a  Creole),  and  thought  him  of  American  parentage. 
Becoming  interested  he  applied  to  the  authorities  to 
investigate  the  matter,  who,  after  an  examination,  took 
the  child  away  from  the  woman,  and  handed  him  over 
to  Mr.  Kenny,  for  the  purpose  of  trying  to  find  his 
parents  or  friends.  After  making  all  the  inquiry  he 
possibly  could  on  the  island  without  discovering  any 
one  to  claim  him,  and  being  obliged  to  return  to  the 
United  States,  he  brought  the  child  with  him,  and  tem- 
porarily left  him  with  a  friend  in  Goshen,  N.  Y.,  while 
he  attended  to  some  business  in  Washington,  D.  C. 
He  said  also  that  he  had  not  decided  what  he  would  do 
with  the  boy ;  but  intended  to  act  under  the  advice  of 
Bishop  Doane.  Mr.  Kenny  expressed  much  sympathy 
and  regret  that  the  boy  found  by  him  was  not  mine. 

During  the  months  of  December  and  January  follow- 
ing, I  received  a  number  of  letters  from  Cooperstown, 
N.  Y.,  giving  an  account  of  a  child  in  or  near  that  place. 
To  these  answers  were  sent,  accompanied  by  a  photo- 
graph and  description  of  Charley,  and  questions  to 
ask  the  child  supposed  to  be  he.  Replies  came  which 
seemed  to  indicate  that  the  child  was  indeed  my  Char- 
ley. The  letters  were  evidently  written  by  a  person 
unaccustomed  to  write,  and  showed  possibly  a  want  of 
tact  in  putting  the  questions  to  the  child.  They  did 
not  impress  me  sufficiently  with  the  correctness  of  the 
writer's  conclusions  as  to  identity,  and  I  asked  that  more 
definite  information  should  be  sent  me,  by  which  I  could 


1 66  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

determine  whether  the  child  was  mine  or  not.  In  reply 
to  this  request  I  received  a  letter  giving  the  name  of  a 
lady  who  is  superintendent  of  the  "  School  of  the  Holy 
Saviour,"  in  Cooperstown,  N.  Y.,  and  stating  that  the 
child  was  in  her  charge.  I  immediately  wrote  to  her 
that  a  child  had  been  reported  to  me  as  having  been 
placed  in  her  institution  who  was  supposed  to  be  my 
son,  and  desired  her  to  send  me  a  picture  and  descrip- 
tion of  him,  and  also  to  telegraph  me  her  impressions 
about  the  matter.  To  which  request  I  had  the  follow- 
ing telegram  and  letter: 

Cooperstown,  January  20th^  1S7J. 
C  K.  Ross. — I  refer  you  to  Bishop  Doane,  Albany,  N.  Y.,  for  infor- 
mation.   I  fear  you  are  mistaken.  Susan  T.  Cooper. 

The  letter  bears  the  same  date. 

Dear  Sir. — I  fear  you  have  been  misled.  The  person  who  has  been 
writing  you  is  a  respectable  woman,  but  knows  absolutely  nothing  of 
the  facts  relating  to  Charley  Kenny.  In  my  answer  by  telegraph  I 
referred  you  to  Bishop  Doane,  who  knows  the  facts  relating  to  the  boy 
at  our  orphanage.  Had  there  been  the  least  probability  of  his  being 
your  dear  little  boy,  in  whom  the  whole  country  is  interested,  you  may 
rest  assured,  we  would  have  written  you  long  before  this.  The  facts 
relating  to  the  boy  now  in  our  house  are  these.  He  was  found  in  the 
hands  of  a  circus  company  in  Havana,  Cuba.  These  people  treated  him 
so  cruelly  that  the  authorities  interfered.  It  was  discovered  tliat  the 
child  was  an  American  citizen,  and  an  American  clergyman  passmg 
the  winter  in  Havana  became  interested  in  the  child,  and  finding  that  he 
had  no  near  relatives  at  hand,  inquired  carefully  into  the  past  history  of 
the  boy.  So  far  as  he  could  discover  the  child  was  an  orphan.  The 
circus  people  had  stolen  him  some  time  before.  The  boy  did  not  know 
his  father's  name ;  but  said  his  good  mamma  used  to  call  him  Charley, 
while  the  circus  people  had  given  him  another  name. 

Mr.  Kenny,  the  clergyman,  has  adopted  the  boy  and  given  him  his 
own  name,  and  intends  to  educate  him  thoroughly.  If  I  remember 
rightly  Mr.  Kenny  brought  this  boy  to  New  York  last  spring.  He  is  a 
bright,  laughing,  joyous  child — looking  six  years  old — tall  and  robust; 


LETTERS    OF   SYMPATHY.  1 6/ 

his  precise  age  we  do  not  know,  of  course ;  his  hair  and  eyes  are  dark 
brown,  his  complexion  rather  dark  than  fair ;  his  face  is  ruddy,  not  pale. 
He  seems  to  have  no  recollection  of  the  name  of  Ross,  which  a  boy  of 
his  intelligence  could  not  possibly  have  forgotten  in  so  short  a  time. 
The  circus  people  were  ti  aining  our  boy  to  be  a  clown ;  this  seems  to 
have  been  their  object,  and  not  to  make  money  by  restoring  him  to  his 
friends.  Such  are  the  facts  as  given  to  me.  Of  course,  when  we  heard 
of  a  stolen  boy  named  Charley  coming  to  the  orphanage,  the  idea  imme- 
diately suggested  itself  that  it  might  be  your  dear  little  boy ;  but  we 
found  that  Bishop  Doane  and  Mr.  Kenny  did  not  conceive  it  possible 
that  this  could  be  Charley  Ross. 

No  one  could  rejoice  more  than  I  should  if  this  should  be  your  dear 
lost  child ;  but  I  dare  not  hope  it.  To-morrow  I  will  have  the  photo- 
graph taken  and  send  it  to  you.  I  do  not  see  any  likeness  in  your 
child's  picture,  which  you  sent  me,  to  Charley  Kenny,  except  the  curly 
hair.  Allow  me,  my  dear  sir,  to  express  my  heartfelt  sympathy  with 
you  and  your  family  in  this  severe  affliction.  God  grant  that  your  dear 
child  may  yet  be  restored  to  you.     Most  sincerely  yours, 

Susan  T.  Cooper. 

When  the  photograph  was  received  it  proved  to  be 
a  picture  of  the  same  child  which  had  been  in  Goshen, 
^N.  Y. 

In  February,  1875,  I  was  in  Red  Bank,  N.  J.,  when 
a  lady  living  in  the  place,  learning  I  was  there,  sent 
for  me  to  call  and  see  her,  as  she  thought  she  could 
give  me  information  that  would  be  of  service  in  tracing 
Charley.  She  said  that  while  on  a  visit  to  Jersey  City, 
a  strange  child  had  been  brought  to  board  near  the 
place  where  she  had  been  staying,  by  a  man  who  seemed 
to  be  a  priest.  That  he  had  left  the  child  for  a  short 
time,  and  then  returned  and  took  him  away.  No  one 
seemed  to  know  the  man  or  where  he  had  gone.  She 
described  the  child  and  the  man.  I  at  once  recognized 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Kenny  and  the  Cuba  child ;  after  a  little 
explanation,  she  concluded  it  was  he.  Thus  three  times 
was  this  little  waif  reported  to  be  my  Charley,  and 


l68  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

now  that  he  has  found  a  good  home  and  kind  friends,  I 
trust  he  will  prove  a  blessing  to  his  new  father,  and  to 
those  who  have  undertaken  to  train  him.  Another 
case  of  interest  is  as  follows  : 

At  a  time  when  I  was  absent  from  home,  a  lady,  a 
Sister  of  Charity  of  the  Catholic  Church,  who  was  pass- 
ing through  the  city,  by  a  note,  asked  me  to  call  on 
her  as  she  had  been  requested  by  the  Lady  Superior 
of  a  school  to  see  me.  She  informed  my  brother,  who 
called  on  her,  that  there  had  been  sent  to  the  institu- 
tion a  child  who  had  some  points  of  resemblance  to  our 
Charley.  She  gave  the  name  of  the  place  in  which 
the  school  is  located,  and  the  lady's  name  who  had 
charge  of  it,  saying  that  by  writing  to  her  we  could  get 
all  the  information  we  desired.  My  brother  wrote  and 
requested  her  to  send  a  photograph  and  description  of 
the  child.  To  this  the  following  reply,  with  the  picture, 
was  received : 

House  of  Providence,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

Mr.  Ross. — Dear  Sir : — Your  letter  of  July  29th,  in  reference  to  the 
interview  with  a  sister  from  this  institution,  went  astray,  but  reached  me 
after  a  time.  Just  then  the  little  boy  had  the  mumps  or  some  enlarge- 
ment of  the  glands  of  the  throat  or  neck,  and  we  decided  to  await  the 
abatement  of  the  swelling  before  having  the  photograph  taken.  We  now 
enclose  it.  The  likeness  is  perfect,  save  a  sternness  not  natural  to  the 
child.  I  think  him  not  overlarge  for  a  child  five  years  old.  He  has 
brown  eyes,  his  hair  is  neither  light  nor  very  dark,  might  perhaps  be 
called  a  light  brown ;  I  think  he  has  dimples  in  his  cheek  and  chin.  He  is 
a  dear  little  child,  and  we  are  anxious  that  he  may  be  restored  to  his  par- 
ents if  they  can  be  found — for  we  feel  what  deep,  deep  sorrow  such  a  loss 
must  be  to  them.  We  would  only  be  too  happy  did  he  prove  to  be  your 
missing  son,  that  we  might  be  the  instruments  of  restoring  joy  and  happi- 
ness to  his  sorrow-stricken  parents,  and  almost  feared  to  address  you,  lest 
we  might  add  one  to  the  many  false  hopes  raised  in  the  breasts  of  the 
father  and  mother,  hopes  destined  to  perish  in  a  still  more  anxious  search. 
T  am  respectfully  yours,  Sister  Beata  E.  McFarel. 


Charley  Kenny,  brought  from  Cuba. 


f 


LETTERS   OF   SYMPATHY.  1 69 

The  picture,  although  that  of  a  fine-looking  child,  did 
not  in  the  least  resemble  our  Charley.  Shortly  after 
receiving  the  above  letter,  another  lady  living  in  Syra- 
cuse wrote  to  me  of  a  child,  describing  him,  etc.,  etc., 
to  whom  I  sent  one  of  Charley's  pictures,  and  gave 
her  some  questions  to  ask  the  child,  and  at  the  same 
time  asked  her  if  she  referred  to  the  child  in  the  House 
of  Providence.  She  replied  that  the  child  she  had  writ- 
ten to  me  about  was  in  a  school,  and  that  he  could  not 
give  satisfactory  answers  to  any  of  the  questions  put  to 
him.  This  letter  confirmed  us  that  the  child  in  the 
House  of  Providence  was  not  Charley. 

During  the  few  first  months  immediately  following 
the  abduction  we  were  almost  daily  advised  of  some 
child  supposed  to  be  our  stolen  boy.  Many  of  these 
cases  were  so  very  encouraging  in  their  circumstances 
that  our  highest  hopes  were  often  excited,  and  the  dis- 
appointment that  followed  in  not  realizing  the  fulfilment 
of  them,  rwas  proportionately  great.  In  time  we  learned, 
by  sad  experience,  not  to  rely  too  hopefully  upon  any 
story,  however  probable,  or  trust  too  confidingly  to  any^ 
theory,  however  plausible.  Giving  slow  credence  to 
every  case,  we  allowed  none  to  be  passed  by  without 
clearly  and  definitely  satisfying  ourselves  that  they  were 
not  correct. 

Very  soon  after  the  publishing  of  the  reward  of 
^20,000,  which  was  offered  by  certain  citizens  over  the 
signature  of  the  Mayor  of  the  city,  for  the  arrest  and 
conviction  of  the  abductors,  and  for  the  recovery  of  the 
child,  a  reward  of  ^2,500  was  offered  for  informa- 
tion that  would  lead  to  the  detection  of  the  kid- 
nappers of  Charles  Brewster  Ross,  and  the  name  of 
8 


I/O  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

the  person  giving  the  information  to  be  kept  secret, 
if  so  desired,  signed  by  Joshua  Taggart,  E.  D.  G.  Car- 
lin,  R.  A.  Lukens,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Detective  Bu- 
reau. The  amount  of  this  reward  was  subsequently 
increased  to  $5,000.  What  resulted  from  these  adver- 
tisements I  do  not  know.  As  this  is  a  private  detect- 
ive agency,  I  am  not  conversant  with  their  operations ; 
but  I  am  aware  that  for  a  time  they  were  actively 
endeavoring  to  trace  the  parties. 

As  time  passed  away  the  mystery  became  more  and 
more  unfathomable.  The  regular  detective  force,  to- 
gether with  special  officers  of  the  police  department, 
were  working  with  unusual  and  constant  zeal.  Ama- 
teur detectives,  who  had  theories  of  their  own  about 
the  matter,  were  pursuing  them  with  unwearying  ardor ; 
but  no  approach  whatever  had  been  made  towards  a 
solution  of  the  enigma,  and  every  one  was  in  entire 
ignorance,  as  to  the  hiding-place  of  the  kidnappers 
or  of  any  clue  to  it.  It  may  be  asked  why  this  great 
difficulty  existed  in  discovering  the  villains  who  had  so 
outraged  the  sense  of  the  security  of  the  community  at 
•large  ?  In  the  fact  that  the  community  felt  and  showed 
that  they  had  been  so  greatly  outraged  lies  the  answer 
to  the  question.  As  was  very  properly  stated  in  an 
editorial  of  one  of  our  daily  newspapers,  *'  an  essential 
difference  exists  between  the  abduction  of  a  child  for 
money,  and  all  other  crimes  in  which  the  main  object 
is  money.  In  the  case  of  bank  or  bond  robberies, 
where  the  plunder  is  recovered,  it  is  generally  through 
the  medium  of  third  parties :  there  is  no  discovery  or 
detection  about  this,  except  that  which  is  made  by  the 
robbers  themselves.     The  kidnappers,  in  this  instance, 


^m 


LETTERS   OF   SYMPATHY.  I/I 

dared  not  use  the  usual  machinery.  The  aroused  an- 
ger and  absolute  purpose  of  the  people  deterred  them 
against  attempting  to  obtain  the  money.  The  villains 
knew  that  they  had  perils  to  run,  besides  the  risks  of  a 
common  trial  by  law.  They  were  therefore  obliged 
to  keep  themselves  and  the  child  in  unusual  seclusion. 
They  were  compelled  to  be  in  the  highest  degree  wary 
and  secret,  and  to  be  doubly  guarded  against  exposure 
which  so  frequently  comes  to  light  by  accident,  and 
which  puts  the  police  on  the  trail  of  malefactors." 

Every  theory  propounded  with  regard  to  the  abduc- 
tion, however  wild  and  extravagant,  was  fully  tested ; 
none  were  passed  by.  Some  of  these  required  but  a 
moment's  examination  to  be  disposed  of  conclusively. 
Others  that  had  some  elements  of  probability  in  them, 
demanded  closer  scrutiny,  and  longer  time  to  sift  suffi- 
ciently to  satisfy  us  of  their  worthlessness. 

One  theory  was  founded  upon  alleged  inconsisten- 
cies and  inaccuracies  in  the  statements  of  my  son  Walter, 
and  my  refusal  to  submit  the  anonymous  letters  for 
public  perusal.  The  insinuations  thrown  out,  that 
Walter  knew  more  about  the  disappearance  of  his 
brother  than  he  had  told,  were  based  upon  variations 
in  his  statements  at  different  times  and  to  different  per- 
sons, and  on  his  failing  to  say  anything  about  his 
brother  when  he  was  found  in  Richmond,  and  from 
my  prohibiting  him  from  communicating  with  reporters 
and  others.  The  inference  drawn  from  these  alleged 
circumstances  was  that  the  child  had  been  trained  to 
tell  his  story,  and  that  myself  or  some  member  of  my 
family  were  the  guilty  ones. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  Walter  was  a  child 


\J2  CHARLEY   ROSS.  ^ 

t 

not  yet  six  years  old,  and  that  during  the  first  few 
weeks  after  the  abduction,  scarcely  a  day  passed  with- 
out many  persons  interviewing  and  talking  to  him  on 
the  subject,  and  newspaper  reporters  from  our  own  as 
well  as  other  cities  visited  my  office  or  my  house  dur- 
ing my  absence,  who,  anxious  to  get  an  item,  and  with 
very  little  judgment  or  discretion,  put  leading  questions 
to  the  child,  and  caused  him  to  say  things  not  men- 
tioned by  him  immediately  after  the  abduction.  He 
was  thus  kept  continually  in  an  excited,  nervous  condi- 
tion, and  at  last  it  became  absolutely  necessary  that  I 
should  prohibit  any  one  from  talking  to  him  about  the 
matter,  except  those  interested  in  getting  information 
for  the  purpose  of  unraveling  the  mystery.  However, 
subsequent  events  conclusively  proved  that  the  child's 
statements  were  remarkably  correct.  With  regard  to 
his  not  saying  anything  when  he  was  found  in  Rich- 
mond, about  his  brother  Charley,  the  little  fellow 
showed  such  evidences  of  alarm,  even  when  I  met  him 
near  his  home,  that  when  I  inquired  where  he  had  been 
he  was  not  able  to  give  me  any  answer,  and  in  his  ex- 
citement and  alarm,  evidently  forgot  to  say  anything 
about  his  brother. 

This  theory,  although  conveying  an  unnatural  and 
monstrous  suspicion,  like  all  others  was  fully  examined 
and  criticised  by  those  capable  of  judging,  and  may  be 
classed,  with  many  other  similar  ones,  as  one  of  the  ab- 
surdities of  the  sad  case.  This  would  not  now  be  refer- 
red to,  only  that  it  continued  to  be  repeated  for  several 
months  after  the  slander  had  been  thoroughly  exploded. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  a  period  where  the  first  ray 
of  light  was  shed  on  this  dark  and  wicked  secret,  which 
shall  be  reserved  for  the  succeeding  chapter. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

THE   REAL  ABDUCTORS  SUSPECTED EMPLOYMENT  OF  THE 

fINKERTON    DETECTIVE   AGENCY    IN   THE   SEARCH. 

OUR  weeks  had  passed  away,  and  notwithstand- 
ing the  almost  superhuman  efforts  in  this  city 
by  the  poHce,  and  by  those  who  were  interested 
with  them,  to  trace  the  abductors  and  to  find  Charley, 
not  the  shghtest  clue  to  either  had  been  discovered.  Sp 
effectually  did  the  kidnappers  cover  their  tracks  when 
they  left  our  city,  that  it  was  truly  said  by  them  in  their 
last  letter,  "  We  think  we  have  left  no  clues  behind  us." 
Still  the  search  was  prosecuted  without  cessation ;  pro- 
fessional pride  and  duty,  combined  with  personal  feeling 
and  sympathy,  stimulating  the  police  to  every  possible 
exertion.  All  felt  the  highest  interest  in  finding  the 
stolen  child,  and  in  bringing  the  miscreants  to  justice.  A 
great  amount  of  difficult  work  was  skilfully  performed 
by  practised  men,  whose  time  and  energies  had  been 
engrossed  for  a  whole  month  on  this  single  object;  yet 
they  never  wearied  in  the  pursuit  for  an  hour,  believing 
they  would  finally  be  successful. 

To  us  who  were  most  deeply  interested,  it  was  a 
month  of  the  most  intense  anxiety  and  distress,  caused 
not  only  by  the  protracted  absence  of  the  child,  but  by 
many  bitter  disappointments  from  false  clues.  These 
disappointments  in  some  cases  almost  led  us  to  despond, 
and  the  darkness  that  still  enshrouded  the  sad  affair 

{^73) 


174  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

well-nigh  crushed  all  hope  of  ever  finding  either  the 
abductors  or  the  child. 

The  first  information  received  in  this  city  that  there 
were  any  suspicious  circumstances  known  in  New  York 
was  by  a  telegram  received  on  the  evening  of  August 
2d,  as  follows: 

Chief  of  Police  of  Philadelphia: — Send  detective  here  with 
original  letters  of  kidnappers  of  Ross'  child ;  think  I  have  information. 
[Signed,]  Geo.  \V.  Walling, 

Superintendent  N.  Y.  Police. 

The  next  morning  Captain  Heins  and  my  brother 
Joseph  went  to  New  York,  taking  with  them  the  letters 
received  from  the  abductors.  At  police  head-quarters 
they  met  Superintendent  Walling,  who  told  them  that 
through  Capt.  Henry  Hedden,  of  the  13th  Police  district, 
he  had  heard  of  a  man  professing  to  know  the  persons 
who  had  stolen  Charley  Ross.  Mr.  Walling  then  sent 
a  messenger  for  the  officer  and  his  informant.  The 
man's  story  in  substance  was  as  follows :  He  said,  that 
a  few  months  before  Charley  Ross  was  taken  away  a 
plan  had  been  arranged  to  abduct  a  child  belonging  to 
a  member  of  the  Vanderbilt  family  residing  at  Throgs- 
neck,  Long  Island ;  he  was  informed  of  the  plot,  and 
asked  to  join  in  it  The  child  was  to  be  taken  while 
playing  on  its  father's  lawn,  and  secreted.  Fifty  thou- 
sand dollars  was  to  be  fixed  as  the  ransom.  He  was 
asked  to  receive  the  child  on  a  small  vessel,  run  out  on 
Long  Island  Sound,  and  keep  it  until  the  money  was  ob- 
tained, when  he  would  be  notified  to  come  back  with  it, 
and  the  child  would  then  be  returned  to  its  parents.  For 
this  service  he  was  to  get  a  certain  portion  of  the  money. 
He  declined  to  join  in  this  conspiracy.     The  circum- 


,J^.. 


THE    REAL   ABDUCTORS    SUSPECTED.  1/5 

stances  connected  with  the  steaHng  of  Charley  Ross 
being  similar,  he  beheved  that  the  same  persons  who 
had  arranged  the  plot  to  take  the  Vanderbilt  child  had 
stolen  Charley.  He  gave  the  names  by  which  the 
persons  had  been  known  who  proposed  to  him  to  en- 
gage in  the  Vanderbilt  abduction  as  Johnson  and  Clark, 
and  also  their  true  names,  William  Mosher  and  Joseph 
Douglas,  and  said  that  he  believed  they  resided  in 
Baltimore,  Md.  His  description  of  the  men  was  more 
minute  than  we  had  already  obtained,  but  corresponded 
in  all  essential  points.  He  also  said,  that  if  his  suspi- 
cions were  correct,  Mosher  was  the  leader  of  the  party ; 
that  he  had  arranged  the  plan,  and  was  the  writer  of 
the  letters  I  had  received.  He  said  he  was  familiar 
with  Mosher's  writing,  and  could  tell  if  he  saw  the  let- 
ters whether  he  had  written  them  or  not.  Before  being 
shown  the  letters,  he  described  Mosher's  manner  of 
writing  as  rapid  and  careless  :  that  he  rarely  completed  a 
page  without  a  blot.  He  said  that  he  folded  a  letter  in  an 
awkward  way  peculiar  to  himself,  and  would  often  write 
either  above  or  below  the  lines.  When  the  letters  were 
shown  to  him  he  affirmed  without  any  hesitation  that 
they  were  written  by  Mosher.  He  professed  to  recog- 
nize the  handwriting,  and  called  the  attention  of  those 
present  to  the  style  of  folding  the  letters  as  described 
by  him,  to  the  blots  of  ink  which  appear  on  almost 
every  page,  and  other  characteristics  spoken  of  by  him. 
Captain  Hedden  stated  that  very  soon  after  the  ab- 
duction of  Charley  was  known  in  New  York,  this  man 
had  called  at  his  office  and  told  him  that  he  believed  he 
knew  the  persons  who  had  stolen  him  ;  but  declined  to 
give  any  reasons  for  his  suspicions.     The  captain  placed 


lyC  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

little  reliance  in  his  statement,  yet  he  repeated  it  to 
Mr.  Matsell,  who  was,  at  the  time.  Superintendent  of 
Police  in  New  York.  The  Superintendent  advised  him 
to  follow  the  matter  up.  This  he  did,  and  after  seeing 
him  frequently,  he  gathered,  little  by  little,  a  similar 
statement  to  that  which  had  been  made  to  Captain  Heins 
and  my  brother. 

On  the  23d  of  July  Mr.  Matsell  was  made  President 
of  the  Police  Commissioners,  and  Geo.  W.  Walling  Su- 
perintendent of  Police. 

Captain  Hedden  then  reported  the  information  he 
obtained  to  Superintendent  Walling,  who  immediately 
sent  for  the  man  and  heard  the  story  himself 

At  that  time  the  trail  was  a  mere  suspicion.  Yet  the 
superintendent  deemed  it  of  sufficient  importance  to 
telegraph  for  a  Philadelphia  officer,  to  inform  him  of 
the  circumstances,  and  to  verify  the  assertion  that  the 
handwriting  of  the  letters  could  be  identified.  At  this 
interview  it  was  arranged  that  the  informant  should  en- 
deavor to  locate  Mosher,  alias  Johnson,  and  to  this  end 
he  wrote  a  letter  addressed  to  Johnson  in  Baltimore. 
Superintendent  Walling  and  Captain  Hedden  endeav- 
ored to  find  other  persons  who  were  likely  to  know 
Mosher  and  Douglas,  from  whom  they  hoped  to  get 
additional  evidence  that  they  were  really  the  guilty 
parties.  These  men  were  both  known  as  criminals  in 
New  York,  and  had  been  convicted  of  several  offenses 
a  few  years  ago.  Mosher  at  that  very  time  was  a  fugi- 
tive from  justice,  he  having  been  arrested  for  burglary 
in  New  Jersey,  and  having  made  his  escape  from  prison 
before  he  had  a  trial. 

It  should  be  here  noticed  that  on  the  3d  of  August 


THE   REAL   ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  I// 

% 

Captain  Heins  and  my  brother  were  in  New  York,  and 
were  made  acquainted  with  the  supposed  clue  to  the 
abductors,  which  had  been  brought  to  the  notice  of  the 
authorities  of  that  city:  that  on  the  5th  of  August  I  re- 
ceived a  letter  from  the  abductors,  dated  Philadelphia, 
August  4th,  which  states :  "  When  you  receive  this  we 
shall  be  at  least  two  hundred  miles  from  here;"  and 
that  the  remainder  of  the  letters,  excepting  the  last  two, 
were  written  and  mailed  in  distant  places.  The  inference 
is  that  by  some  means  the  abductors  at  that  time  had 
learned  that  they  were  suspected  of  the  crime,  and  had 
fled  from  our  city. 

It  was  arranged  with  the  New  York  detectives  that 
the  authorities  in  this  city  should  be  informed  of  every 
important  fact  connected  with  the  case  which  might 
be  developed  in  New  York,  and  that  whatever  assist- 
ance could  be  rendered  here  should  be  afforded  them. 
In  accordance  with  this  understanding  Captain  Heins 
received  the  following  letter: 

New  York,  Aug.  5th,  1874. 

Capt.  Wm.  R.  Heins. — Dear  Sir  : — We  are  doing  everything  possible 
to  locate  those  parties,  and  with  good  prospect  of  success.     I  will  write 
you  again  to-morrow,  or  will  telegraph  if  anything  importajit  is  developed. 
Yours,  Henry  Hedden,  Captain. 

And  on  the  8th  of  August  Captain  Hedden  writes 
as  follows: 

Capt.  Wm,  R.  Heins. — Dear  Sir  : — We  are  busy,  and  hope  to  find 
something  very  soon.  Please  send  me  a  few  newspapers  published  in 
your  city  during  two  or  three  weeks  past.  I  want  those  that  contain 
small  advertisements.  Papers  of  the  style  of  the  "N.  Y.  Sun"  or 
"  Evening  News"  are  what  I  want. 

Captain  Hedden  had  learned  that  Mosher  and  Doug- 
las manufactured  a  moth  preventive,  which  they  called 

*'Mothee,"  and  that  they  travelled  about  the  coufitry 

8* 


178  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

with  a  horse  and  wagon,  selling  this  with  other  small 
articles,  and  he  thought  that  possibly  the  moth  powder 
might  be  advertised.  He  was  also  informed  that 
Mosher  had  a  brother-in-law,  Wm.  Westervelt,  in  New 
York,  a  discharged  police  officer  of  that  city,  and  sus- 
pected that  he  might  be  in  some  way  implicated. 

On  the  night  of  the  9th  of  August  a  message  was 
sent  to  me  to  bring  my  son  Walter  to  New  York  and 
report  to  Superintendent  Walling.  On  the  following 
morning  I  notified  him  of  our  arrival  in  compliance 
with  his  request.  He  called  at  the  hotel  at  which  we 
were,  introduced  himself,  and  asked  me  to  remain  in 
my  room  until  he  saw  me  again.  The  same  afternoon, 
accompanied  by  Captain  Hedden,  he  came  and  told  me 
to  follow  the  Captain's  instructions.  By  arrangement 
with  the  Captain,  early  the  following  morning,  August 
I  ith,  Walter  and  I  went  with  him  and  saw  Westervelt 
without  his  knowing  we  were  observing  him,  Walter 
being  asked  if  he  ever  saw  the  man  before,  replied,  "  No, 
sir ;  never ;"  and  made  the  same  answer  to  a  question 
whether  Westervelt  was  one  of  the  men  in  the  buggy 
on  Washington  Lane.  After  leaving  the  place  where 
we  saw  him,  Captain  Hedden  said,  *'  I  did  not  think  he 
was  one  of  the  persons  who  took  the  children,  but  I 
wanted  to  be  certain  he  was  not;  yet  I  believe  he  is  con- 
nected with  the  matter,  and  is  in  communication  with 
the  abductors."  We  then  went  to  Police  Headquarters, 
where  Superintendent  Walling  related  to  me  the  story 
he  had  heard,  and  said,  regarding  it  in  the  most  favor- 
able light,  it  seemed  to  him  probable  that  these  persons 
accused  of  the  crime  were  the  real  abductors ;  but  that 
his  opinion  was  based  entirely  on  the  suspicions  of  his 


-THE   REAL  ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  1 79 

informer,  and  that  he  had  not  found  anything  to  con- 
firm him  that  they  were  correct ;  but  would  do  every- 
thing in  his  power  to  gain  further  information,  as  well 
as  to  find  the  men. 

This  was  the  first  knowledge  I  had  of  this  clue; 
Intimations  had  been  given  me  that  there  was  some- 
thing going  on  in  New  York,  without,  however,  stating 
what  it  was. 

After  hearing  Superintendent  Walling,  my  impres- 
sions were  that  this  was  the  most  likely  clue  we  ever 
had  to  the  abductors,  and  I  felt  hopeful  that  we  would 
soon  have  the  suspicions  confirmed,  or  reach  the  parties. 

It  was  stated  before,  that  the  informer  had  written  a 
letter  to  Johnson  at  Baltimore ;  but,  receiving  no  reply, 
he,  with  an  officer  from  New  York,  was  sent  to  Balti- 
more to  try  to  find  these  men.  On  their  way  to  that 
city  they  stopped  in  Philadelphia,  as  the  following  tele- 
gram announced : 

r  New  York,  August  11th,  1874. 

Capt.  Wm.  R.  Heins. — One  of  my  men  and  another  man  will  be  at 
your  office  to-morrow  A.M.,  at  9  o'clock.  Henry  Hedden, 

Captain  13th  Precinct. 

The  officer  brought  with  him  a  letter  of  introduction 
from  the  Superintendent,  in  which  he  also  states  the 
object  of  their  visit  to  Baltimore  as  follows : 

New  York,  August  nth,  1814. 
Captain  Heins. — Dear  Sir: — The  bearer,  Officer  Doyle,  and  another 
man  go  to  your  city,  and  intend  going  on  to  Baltimore,  where  the  family 
of  Johnson  lived  a  few  weeks  since.  Johnson,  we  think,  is  the  prime 
movei  in  the  Ross  abduction.  Mr.  Doyle  and  the  man  who  is  with  him 
both  know  Johnson  and  his  family  well.  This  Johnson  has  a  wife  and 
four  children.  Some  time  since  he  escaped  from  jail  at  Freehold,  New 
Jersey,  while  awaiting  trial  for  burglary.     His  correct  name  is  Mosher. 


l8o  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

It  may  be  that  we  are  on  the  wrong  scent ;  but  I  think  not.     If  they  can 
locate  Johnson's  family,  we  can  certainly  find  his  whereabouts. 

Yours  respectfully,  Geo.  W.  Walling, 

Superintendent. 

Officer  Doyle  and  his  companion  failed  to  find  any 
trace  of  Mosher's  (alias  Johnson's)  family  in  Baltimore, 
and  believing,  from  information  which  they  had  re- 
ceived, that  the  family  lived  in  Philadelphia,  they  re- 
turned to  this  city,  and  spent  several  days  here  in  an 
unsuccessful  search  for  them. 

On  the  13th  of  August  Superintendent  Walling  wrote 
as  follows : 

Captain  Heins. — Dear  Sir  : — If  we  are  right  in  our  suspicions,  and 
the  parties  that  Detective  Doyle  and  his  companion  are  searching  for  in 
Baltimore  are  guilty  of  abducting  the  Ross  child,  in  all  probability  the 
child  is  kept  on  board  of  a  small  boat,  and  may  be  in  your  vicinity. 
Yours  in  haste,  G.  W.  Walling. 

Superintendent. 

Mr.  Walling  knew  that  Mosher  was  a  boat-builder  by 
trade,  and  that  he  frequented  the  waters  around  New 
York  in  a  boat  on  marauding  expeditions,  and  supposed 
that  a  small  vessel  would  be  the  most  likely  place  in 
which  Mosher  would  conceal  the  child.  On  receipt  of 
the  above  letter,  all  the  boats,  vessels  and  barges  lying 
in  the  Delaware  and  Schuykill  rivers  were  searched,  as 
already  related.  Up  to  this  time  no  more  definite  in- 
formation had  been  obtained,  except  that  Mosher,  after 
his  escape  from  jail  in  Freehold,  N.  J.,  about  three  years 
prior  to  these  events,  had  been  lost  sight  of  by  the 
police,  and  had  been  absent  from  his  former  haunts  in 
New  York. 

This  clue,  as  before  stated,  rested  entirely  on  the 
statement  of  a  person  who  had  been  solicited  to  be  a 
participant  in  a  similar  abduction;  and  while  the  author- 


THE   REAL   ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  l8l 

ities  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  did  not  feel  at  all 
sanguine  that  the  information  was  correct,  yet  they 
deemed  it  best  to  pursue  the  trail  without  communi- 
cating their  action  to  any  person  except  those  actually 
engaged  in  working  it  up.  This  secrecy  seemed  neces- 
sary, because  several  times  before  the  police  had  been 
defeated  in  accomplishing  their  purposes  by  the  injudi- 
cious publicity  which  had  been  given  to  their  move- 
ments. 

All  that  I  knew  of  the  matter  I  learned  on  my  first 
interview  with  Mr.  Walling.  I  read  none  of  the  letters 
or  telegrams  that  passed  between  the  two  cities,  and 
felt  that  if  the  end  could  be  reached  better  without  my 
being  kept  posted  in  the  means  used,  I  should  be  con- 
tented by  asking  'general  questions.  The  correspond- 
ence and  telegrams  relating  to  this  clue  already  given, 
and  those  to  follow,  came  into  my  possession  very  re- 
cently, and  were  then  read  by  me  for  the  first  time. 

The  press,  looking  only  at  results,  found  fault  with 
the  police  and  charged  them  with  inefficiency;  and  so 
long  a  time  had  now  passed  without  apparently  getting 
any  nearer  to  a  solution  of  the  mystery,  that  the  public 
became  impatient:  a  desire  began  everywhere  to  be 
manifested  that  every  means  should  be  employed  to 
ferret  out  the  abductors  and  to  recover  the  child.  A 
few  citizens  deeply  interested  believed  that  the  time  had 
arrived  when  a  new  power  should  be  called  in  to  attempt 
to  unravel  the  mystery,  and  concluded  to  employ  the 
Pinkerton  detective  agency  in  the  case.  While  these 
negotiations  for  this  object  were  pending,  and  arrange- 
ments were  being  made,  a  letter  from  the  abductors 
reached  me  from  New  York  City. 


l82  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

The  last  letter  received  from  the  abductors  was  dated 
August  4th,  and  no  reply  made  to  it  My  advisers  deemed 
it  best  not  to  answer  it,  believing  that  when  it  was  found 
that  no  notice  was  taken  of  their  letter  they  would  write 
again.  This  they  did  after  a  delay  of  nearly  three  weeks. 
The  suspense  was  long;  but  when  the  letter  did  come, 
there  was  a  feeling  that  a  point  had  been  gained,  and 
that  the  villains  were  becoming  anxious  to  close  the 
negotiations.  The  letter  was  dated  and  mailed  in  New 
York,  August  2 1st,  and  was  received  about  nine  o'clock 
the  same  night  in  Philadelphia,  and  is  as  follows; 

[No.  i6.] 

New  York,  August  21. — Mr.  Ros  :  we  have  heard  nothing  from  yu 
since  we  wrote  yu  about  3  weeks  ago.  we  then  told  yu  if  yu  had  any- 
thing to  comunicate  to  us  to  do  it  through  the  New  York  Herald  person- 
als, we  have  seen  nothing  but  these  words  (Christian  K.  Ross,  304 
Market  street),  we  know  not  what  to  make  of  that,  we  have  therefor 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  yu  don't  mean  to  redeem  yu  child  on  the 
conditions  which  we  proposed,  yu  must  bear  in  mind  we  would  never 
agree  to  any  other  terms,  the  fact  of  yu  saying  the  action  must  be  sym- 
ultainous  is  absolutely  imposible.  we  would  require  at  least  a  few  ours 
to  examine  the  mony  and  see  if  it  were  spurious  or  all  marked  up  and 
then  but  a  few  ours  more  would  be  necessary  to  place  yu  child  in  yu 
possession  for  he  is  not  so  far  off  as  yu  may  imagin.  the  folowing  is  the 
way  we  had  intended  to  return  him  to  yu.  we  was  going  to  put  a  labill 
on  his  back  and  take  him  to  a  respectable  house  at  night  rouse  them  up. 
tell  them  to  take  this  child  as  directed  pay  them  for  their  trouble,  this 
arrangement  does  not  me  with  yu  concent  so  there  is  no  other  altemitive 
left  yu.  now  we  demand  yu  anser  yes  or  now  as  we  are  going  to  urope 
the  24  Sept  ai>d  he  has  got  to  be  disposed  of  one  way  or  the  other  by 
that  time,  if  you  «a.y  redeem  him  it  has  got  to  be  on  our  terms  alone  if 
yu  do  not  answer  we  'hall  take  it  as  granted  that  yu  dont  mean  to  pay 
yu  money,  we  shall  act  accordingly,  address  (John  New  Herald  per- 
sonals.) you  are  listing  ^o  old  womans  visions  and  dreams  which  wil 
never  find  yu  child,  we  x)uld  have  told  yu  it  was  useless  to  go  to  iUi- 
noise  to  look  for  charly  but  -»*!  would  not  have  believed  us. 


THE   REAL  ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  I83 

In  this  letter  the  abductors  call  my  attention  to  the 
fact  that  no  reply  was  made  to  their  letter  of  August 
4th,  and  to  having  seen  my  name  in  the  personal  col 
umn  of  the  New  York  Herald,  which  they  do  not  under- 
stand. They  speak  again  of  the  impossibility  of  making 
the  exchange  simultaneously,  and  say  they  will  not 
agree  to  any  other  than  the  terms  already  proposed  by 
them ;  that  they  will  require  a  few  hours  to  examine  the 
money,  and  then  a  few  more  hours  would  be  required 
in  which  to  return  the  child,  but  that  he  is  not  so  far 
away  as  I  might  suppose.  They  also  state  the  way  in 
which  they  propose  to  return  the  child  to  me,  and 
demand  an  answer  to  the  letter,  threatening  to  go  to 
Europe  the  following  month,  and  saying  that  this  mat- 
ter must  be  disposed  of  before  that  time.  They  advise 
me  not  to  travel  around  to  look  for  Charley,  as  no 
persons  but  they  have  him. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  tone  of  this  letter  is  much 
milder  than  any  of  its  predecessors.  It  is  wanting  in  the 
cruel  threats  in  which  they  had  indulged  so  freely  in 
the  other  letters. 

The  abductors  had  now  become  fugitives  from  our 
city,  where  they  were  not  known  to  the  police  authori- 
ties as  criminals,  and  had  fled  to  New  York,  where  they 
were  not  only  liable  to  be  arrested  for  this  crime,  but 
also  for  another  offense.  Yet  they  felt  safe  there,  so 
long  as  they  had  one  interested,  one  who  by  giving 
them  information  of  the  doings  of  the  authorities,  aided 
them  in  secreting  themselves. 

My  name  appeared  in  the  personal  columns  of  the 
Herald  in  answer  to  an  anonymous  letter,  which  had  no 
relation  to  these  men;  yet  the  fact  of  their  observinjg:  it 


184  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

shows  how  impatient  they  were  for  an  answer  to  their 
last  letter.  In  all  the  former  letters  their  whole  aim 
was  to  get  the  money,  without  laying  themselves  open 
to  discovery.  In  this  they,  for  the  first  time,  indicate 
the  way  in  which  they  propose  to  get  Charley  to  his 
home.  They  evidently  knew  they  were  suspected  of 
having  committed  the  crime,  as  they  desire  to  hasten 
the  negotiations  by  stating  that  on  the  24th  of  Septem- 
ber they  would  go  to  Europe.  They  seem  to  have 
taken  it  for  granted  that  I  was  following  out  the  many 
suggestions  made  to  me  by  clairvoyants  and  spiritual- 
ists of  every  species,  and  that  I  had  gone  or  sent  to 
Illinois,  to  look  at  a  child.  This  they  were  induced  to 
believe  by  the  newspapers,  which  they  evidently  read 
closely. 

After  the  arrangements  between  the  Pinkerton  agency 
and  the  citizens  who  employed  them  were  completed, 
and  a  committee  of  citizens  had  been  appointed  to  carry 
out  their  plans,  I  was  informed  that  they  were  engaged 
to  work  in  the  case.  So  anxious  was  I  to  end  the  tor- 
tures which  my  family  and  myself  were  enduring,  that 
without  inquiring  into  the  conditions  upon  which  the 
agency  had  been  employed,  I  was  glad  that  their  assist- 
ance had  been  procured. 

On  the  26th  of  August,  the  following  personal  was 
published  in  the  New  York  Herald,  in  reply  to  the  let- 
ter of  August  2ist : 

John.  Did  not  answer,  because  your  proposition  led  my  friends  to 
doubt  whether  you  ever  had  it.  Write,  giving  better  proof,  and  nanie  an 
attorney,  or  other  person,  through  whom  arrangements  can  be  made. 

To  which  the  following  answer  was  received  post- 
marked Rondout,  New  York,  27th  of  August : 


THE   REAL   ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  1 85 

[No.  17.  Postmarked  Rondout,  27th  of  August.] 
Albany,  August  26. — Mr.  Ros — Your  timely  answer  saved  yu  child. 
"We  had  determined  if  yu  did  not  care  to  save  him  we  would  not  swerve 
one  jot  or  tittle  from  the  fate  we  had  designed  for  him — not  that  we 
delight  in  blood  but  it  was  inevitable  with  our  selves  in  order  to  carry 
out  our  plan  of  action  yu  ask  for  no  more  prof  that  we  had  him  or  that 
we  have  him — that  is  right — yu  should  have  prof  that  we  are  the  iden- 
tical ones  who  kidnaped  Charley — we  thought  that  yu  were  well  satisfied 
that  we  were  the  kidnapers — we  wil  first  prove  to  yu  we  took  Charley 
— ask  Walter  if  one  erf  the  men  did  not  hold  him  between  his  legs  an 
partly  on  his  knee  with  the  cloth  in  front  of  him  while  Charley  set 
behind  us  both  entirely  out  of  sight — ask  him  if  he  did  not  want  to  go  up 
on  main  road  to  git  fireworks  an  we  told  him  we  would  first  go  to  ant 
Susy's  that  she  kep  a  shop  where  we  could  get  them  cheaper,  ask  him 
if  we  did  not  keep  givin  him  pieces  of  candy  as  we  rode  along,  ask 
him  if  we  did  not  go  from  your  house  west  to  Morton  street  and  then 
south  instead  of  going  towards  the  depot  on  Washington  lane  as  it  has 
been  stated  in  the  papers  these  remarks  we  think  are  suficient  to  prove 
to  yu  that  we  are  the  men  who  took  him  if  yu  have  received  any  other 
letters  headed  other  than  Ros  or  Mr.  Ros  they  are  forgeries,  we  have 
sent  you  8  or  10  letters  in  all,  if  you  had  accepted  the  proposition  we 
made  yu  some  four  weeks  ago  yu  would  now  without  doubt  have  yu 
child  safe  in  yu  own  house  but  yu  rejected  the  offer  and  left  us  without 
the  means  to  negotiate  with  yu.  Mr,  Ros  if  you  ever  expect  to  recove  yu 
child  yu  have  got  to  in  a  measm-e  rely  on  our  faith,  in  dealing  with  us 
yu  must  be  satisfied  that  yu  child  was  taken  for  a  ransom.  We  have  set 
the  price  and  asked  the  ransom  of  yu,  do  yu  think  if  you  paid  the  ran- 
som once  that  we  would  ever  ask  it  the  second  time,  no  man  would  be 
foolish  enough  to  pay  ransom  the  second  time  for  a  thing  he  had  paid 
for  once  and  did  not  get,  if  we  wanted  more  money  from  you  we  would 
ask  it  now,  instead  of  asking  more  we  would  rather  throw  off  some,  but 
the  public  have  interfered  so  much  in  this  bisiness  that  we  are  deter- 
mined every  dollar  shall  be  paid  or  not  one  cent  You  have  asked  that 
the  action  between  us  should  be  symultainous  You  must  know  from  the 
nature  of  this  busines  that  is  impossible — first  we  would  have  to  give 
yu  Charley  when  we  receive  the  mony  yu  git  yu  child,  We  might  git  a 
bundle  of  brown  paper  and  a  chain  around  our  necks  No  sir  Mr.  Ros 
We  must  have  at  least  4  or  5  hours  to  examine  the  money  to  see  if  yu 
have  delt  faithfully  with  us  what  we  mean  is  yu  must  give  the  mony  in 
good  condition  unscarified  or  not  at  all,   then  yu  have  performed  yu  part 


1 86  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

in  good  faith  When  that  is  done  we  have  no  further  use  for  Charley  he 
has  answered  the  whole  end  for  which  we  got  him  and  we  as  vile  as  we 
are  would  be  working  against  our  own  interests  if  we  did  not  return  him 
to  you  as  we  promised  we  only  wish  it  was  posible  to  effect  the  change 
symultaniously  but  as  that  cant  be  done  yu  must  accept  the  best  we  can 
offer  yu,  do  yu  open  this  correspondence  with  the  intention  to  pay  yu 
money  on  our  terms  and  git  yu  child  or  is  it  tlie  foolish  advice  of  some 
of  yu  friends  again  with  the  idea  of  entraping  us.  do  you  want  to  daly 
along  and  keep  your  child  month  after  month  living  in  a  place  where  the 
strongest  could  not  live  over  one  year,  we  would  not  let  him  unnecessarily 
sufer  but  this  exteriordary  search  has  made  it  necessary  to  keep  him  where 
the  light  of  the  sun  has  never  shown  upon  him  since  the  2d  day  of  July. 
we  have  seen  Charley  about  4  days  ago  his  whole  cry  is  he  wants  Walter 
to  come  see  him  and  he  is  afraid  he  wil  not  go  to  Atlantic  City  with  his 
mother,  don't  think  this  is  only  an  appeal  to  your  affection  as  a  farther 
it  is  symply  the  words  that  he  used  when  we  saw  him  last.  Mr.  Ros. 
One  word  more — do  you  want  to  redeem  Charley  or  not  on  our  terms, 
if  yu  do  yu  must  make  up  you  mind  that  the  money  must  be  paid  in  good 
faith,  don't  deceive  yu  self  that  if  the  ransom  is  not  paid  that  we  will 
set  yu  child  at  liberty,  we  can  never  do  that  our  whole  plan  would  be 
frustrated  at  one  blow  and  our  work  would  come  to  naught,  as  yu  deal 
with  us  so  shal  we  deal  with  you  in  return,  we  saw  yu  personal  in 
Herald  of  26.  whatever  answer  yu  have  to  make  to  this  let  it  be  in 
Albany  Argus  no  put  it  in  New  York  htrald  personals  as  we  wil  leave 
here  to-day  and  drop  this  somewhere  on  our  way  to  New  York,  we 
can  see  the  New  York  herald  any  part  of  the  United  States. 
(Address  as  be  for  John.) 
P.  S. — yu  acted  wisely  in  refusing  these  letters  until  yu  got  yu  child 
— if  yu  had  published  them,  no  doubt  it  wotdd  have  been  the  means 
of  sacrificing  you  child. 

The  abductors  begin  this  letter  by  saying  that  my 
answer  to  their  last  letter  had  saved  the  child.  They 
profess  not  to  delight  in  blood,  but  are  determined  to 
carry  out  their  plans,  even  though  they  should  involve 
the  taking  of  his  life.  Admitting  that  it  is  proper  for 
me  to  have  proof  that  they  kidnapped  Charley,  they 
profess  to  have  additional  evidence,  and  present  ques- 


THE   REAL   ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  1 8/ 

tions  to  be  asked  of  Walter  to  prove  that  they  really 
did  take  the  children  away.  A  statement  is  given  of 
the  manner  in  which  they  addressed  me  previously  in 
their  letters,  with  the  number  of  letters  sent  to  me  by 
them.  They  state  that  if  their  offer  to  make  the  ex- 
change had  been  accepted,  I  should  have  had  the  child 
four  weeks  ago,  and  say  that  I  must  rely  on  their  word 
for  the  fulfillment  of  their  part  of  the  proposition.  This 
is  supported  by  the  argument,  that  it  would  be  foolish 
for  them  to  expect  another  ransom  after  the  first  had 
been  paid.  They  say  that  had  not  the  public  interfered 
in  the  business,  they  would  have  lessened  the  sum  of 
money  fixed  as  the  ransom  ;  but  will  not  now.  They 
argue  that  it  will  be  impossible  to  make  a  simultaneous 
exchange,  and  say  that  I  would  get  Charley,  and  they 
might  receive  a  bundle  of  paper  and  a  chain  around 
their  necks.  For  these  reasons,  they  require  time  to 
make  themselves  secure.  If  they  do  not  restore  the 
child  after  finding  that  the  money  is  all  right,  they 
would  be  working  against  their  own  interests,  but  are 
still  doubtful  about  my  dealing  with  them  in  good 
faith.  They  endeavor  to  work  upon  my  feelings  as  a 
father,  by  saying  that  Charley  is  necessarily  kept 
closely  confined,  where  no  one  could  live  over  a  year, 
and  where  the  light  of  the  sun  has  never  shone  on  him 
since  the  2d  day  of  July,  and  by  telling  me  that  the 
continual  cry  of  Charley  is  to  see  Walter,  and  to  go 
to  Atlantic  City  to  be  with  his  mother.  They  claim 
that  their  whole  plan  would  be  frustrated,  if  the  child 
should  be  set  at  liberty  without  the  ransom  being  paid, 
•and  re-affirm  that  as  I  deal  with  them,  so  will  they  deal 
with  me ;  and  finally  they  require  an  answer  in  the 
New  York  Herald,  with  the  same  address  of  "John." 


1 88  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Rondout,  as  most  of  my  readers  know,  is  built  on 
the  west  bank  of  the  Hudson  river, at  the  mouth  of  a 
stream  to  which  the  name  of  the  town  has  been  given, 
and  is  about  ninety  miles  north  of  New  York  City; 
here  is  the  terminus  of  the  Hudson  and  Delaware  canal. 
This  place  was  visited  at  a  later  date  by  Mosher,  Doug- 
las and  Westervelt,  and  will  be  noticed  again  in  the 
order  of  time. 

It  is  hard  to  believe  that  in  our  country  a  man  could 
be  so  devoid  of  feeling  as  to  threaten  deliberately  to 
take  the  life  of  a  little  child,  in  order  that  his  sad  case 
might  be  referred  to  as  an  example  to  terrify  other 
parents  into  redeeming  their  children  stolen  from  them. 
Yet  we  find  this  threat  repeated  again  and  again  by  the 
writer  of  these  letters.  When  Walter  was  asked  the 
questions  which  the  kidnappers  gave  us  in  the  letter 
hist  received,  his  answers  to  all  were  as  indicated  by  the 
writer,  except  that  in  reply  to  that  relating  to  the  direc- 
tion first  taken  after  getting  into  the  buggy,  he  said 
that  there  was  a  dirty  lap-cover  drawn  up  which  nearly 
covered  them,  and  that  he  had  asked  the  men  to  take 
them  to  the  main  street  to  get  the  fire  crackers;  but 
that  they  said,  "We  will  go  to  Aunt  Susy's,  where  you 
can  get  a  pocket  full  for  five  cents."  He  said  that  they 
had  given  them  candy  all  along  the  road,  and  when  he 
got  home  he  had  still  a  considerable  quantity  in  his 
pocket.  But  he  stated  very  positively  they  did  not  go 
to  Morton  street,  but  turned  the  horse  before  getting 
there,  and  went  out  Washington  Lane,  passing  by  the 
railroad  station.  My  name  in  all  the  letters  is  spelled 
"  Ros."  They  were  wrong,  however,  in  saying  they  had 
sent  me  eight  or  ten  letters;    I  had  received  sixteen 


THE   REAL  ABDUCTORS    SUSPECTED.  1 89 

written  by  the  same  person  and  addressed  in  the  same 
way. 

Before  committing  the  crime,  the  kidnappers  did  not 
suppose  that  pubhc  feehng  would  be  so  intense,  or  popu- 
lar indignation  so  fiercely  aroused.  This  is  again  re- 
ferred to,  and  is  given  as  an  additional  reason  why  they 
will  not  change  their  original  dernands,  evidently  fear- 
ing summary  vengeance  frdm  the  people. 

It  is  impossible  for  me  to  describe  my  feelings  when 
I  read  the  closing  part  of  this  letter,  which  speaks  of 
Charley  being  left  in  close  confinement.  Imagination 
suggested  every  conceivable  dark  and  loathsome  place 
as  his  prison — a  cave,  the  hold  of  a  vessel,  or  an  aban- 
doned mine — these  and  other  like  places  were  conjec- 
tured as  one  of  his  hiding-places  where  the  light  of  the 
sun  might  be  shut  out.  It  seemed  to  me  that  it  could 
not  be  possible  that  he  should  be  treated  so  cruelly  ; 
though  the  statement  was  before  me,  I  felt  that  it  could 
not — must  not  be  so — that  he  must  soon  be  discovered. 
I  fancied  that  I  could  hear  his  plaintive  appeals  to  see 
his  brother  Walter,  and  that  he  might  go  to  Atlantic 
City  to  be  with  his  mother.  Who  so  callous  as  not  to 
be  touched  by  the  piteous  cry  of  a  child?  and  yet  these 
miscreants,  more  cruel  than  brutes,  tamely  listened  to 
the  wailings  of  this  distressed  and  innocent  child,  whom 
they  had  stolen  from  his  home,  without  any  emotions 
of  pity ;  and  then,  with  worse  than  fiendish  calculation, 
could  write  to  his  parents,  already  broken  down  by  long- 
continued  torture  and  suspense,  "  His  whole  cry  is,  he 
wants  Walter  to  come  to  see  him,"  and  "  he  is  afraid 
he  will  not  go  to  Atlantic  City  to  be  with  his  mother ;" 
and  all  this  for  the  purpose  of  making  money. 


190  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Mr.  Bangs,  Superintendent  in  New  York,  and  Mr. 
B.  Franklin,  Superintendent  in  Philadelphia  of  the  Pink- 
erton  detective  agency,  after  obtaining  all  the  informa- 
tion possible  by  personal  inquiries  and  examinations, 
besides  having  been  made  acquainted  with  all  that  the 
public  authorities  had  investigated,  entered  vigorously 
upon  their  work,  by  preparing  circulars  with  photo- 
graphs of  Charley  ;  large  and  small  posters  describing 
the  child,  men,  horse  and  wagon,  headed  with  the 
^20,000  reward  offered  by  the  Mayor ;  bills  with  wood 
cuts  and  lithographs  of  the  child ;  photographs  with 
descriptions  on  postal  cards,  and  photographs  mounted 
on  cards  and  bills,  offering  a  reward  of  one  thousand 
dollars  for  any  information  to  the  person  who  would 
give  positive  information  as  to  the  owner  of  the  horse 
and  buggy  used  by  the  kidnappers,  and  for  informa- 
tion of  the  house  the  kidnappers  stopped  at  prior  to  said 
abduction. 

The  different  circulars  and  descriptions  were  dis- 
tributed in  immense  numbers;  being  sent  to  the 
sheriff  of  every  county  in  the  United  States,  to  every 
postmaster  in  the  United  States  and  Canada.  Photo- 
graphs and  descriptions  were  forwarded  to  every  rail- 
road office,  with  a  request  that  each  conductor  be 
furnished  with  a  copy  ;  to  every  steamboat  and  steam- 
ship that  came  to  any  of  the  ports  of  the  United 
States  and  the  Canadas.  They  had  them  put  perma- 
nently on  all  the  ferry  boats  and  street  railroad  cars, 
in  the  various  railroad  depots  j  in  fact,  wherever  any 
one  could  be  reached  by  means  of  printed  posters  or 
circulars,  there  could  be  seen  printed  descriptions  of 
Charley,  with  his  picture,  or  hand-bills  describing  the 


THE   REAL   ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  IQI 

abductors  and  their  horse  and  wagon.  This  detective 
agency  did  not  confine  itself  to  our  own  country,  but 
sent  large  quantities  of  the  printed  matter  to  England 
and  other  parts  of  Europe.  Thus  the  widest  pub- 
licity was  given  to  the  abduction,  and  the  picture  of 
Charley  Ross  was  scattered  by  this  means,  so  that 
there  was  scarcely  an  English-speaking  town  or  village 
where  it  could  not  be  found,  either  posted  up  in  a  pub- 
lic place,  or  in  the  possession  of  some  of  the  citizens. 

The  details  of  their  work  I  never  knew.  They  were 
employed  by  gentlemen  of  this  city  who  were  deeply 
interested  in  restoring  the  child,  and  in  the  detection  of 
the  criminals,  and  who  believed  that  this  agency  had 
greater  facilities  than  any  other  organization  for  accom- 
plishing the  work.  A  daily  report  was  made  to  a  com- 
mittee selected  from  among  the  contributors  to  the  fund 
raised  to  pay  the  expenses  of  the  work.  It  was  there- 
fore not  necessary,  and  perhaps  not  proper,  that  I  should 
know  what  means  were  being  employed.  It  was  enough 
for  me  to  hope  that,  with  their  aid,  results  would  be 
reached  that  should  restore  to  me  my  child. 

The  funds  raised  for  the  object  of  meeting  the  ex- 
penses incident  to  their  employment,  have  been  long 
since  exhausted,  and  the  committee  disbanded. 

My  nephew,  in  the  latter  part  of  September,  went  to 
Scotland  to  investigate  a  case,  and  see  a  child  discov- 
ered by  the  agency,  supposed  to  be  Charley  ;  but 
returned,  after  an  absence  of  six  weeks,  with  the  oft- 
repeated  word  "  Wrong."  Mr.  Joseph  W.  Lewis  went 
to  Montreal,  Canada,  about  the  same  time,  and  came 
back,  after  several  weeks,  with  the  same  answer — 
"  Wrong."    One  of  the  detectives  was  sent  to  Colorado 


192  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

to  look  after  a  child,  who  had  been  reported  in  that 
distant  territory  as  being  my  little  son.  He  also  re- 
turned disappointed. 

For  months  the  Pinkerton  men  performed  an  immense 
amount  of  work.  All  means  required  were  at  their 
command,  to  use  at  their  discretion,  and  every  assis- 
tance that  could  be,  was  afforded  by  the  counsels  of  the 
committee,  gentlemen  of  the  highest  standing  in  our 
community  and  of  the  clearest  judgment  that  could  be 
selected;  yet  they  failed  to  discover  anything  that 
shed  a  ray  of  light  on  the  mystery.  The  failure  is,  of 
course,  to  be  attributed  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  case, 
which  compelled  the  abductors  to  use  the  utmost  cau- 
tion in  all  their  movements,  and  to  cover  all  their  tracks 
so  effectually  as  to  leave  behind  them  no  traces  which 
might  lead  to  their  discovery. 

The  constant  failures  to  find  out  the  perpetrators  of 
the  crime  show  the  impotence  of  all  the  appliances 
of  police  and  detectives  when  confronted  by  cunning 
and  audacious  criminals,  who,  using  the  advantage  of 
their  position,  even  defy  pursuit. 

Efforts  continued  to  be  made  in  New  York  to  get 
additional  evidence  as  to  whether  Mosher  alias  Johnson 
and  Clark  were  the  real  abductors,  and  on  August  24th, 
1874,  Superintendent  Walling  wrote  as  follows: 

W.  R.  Heins,  Captain  Detectives. — Dear  Sir : — Yours  of  22d 
received.  I  am  more  confident  than  ever  that  the  parties  Clark  and 
Mosher  alias  Johnson  are  the  parties  we  want.  I  knew  before  receiving 
your  letter  that  they  were  somewhere  in  this  vicinity,  etc.,  etc. 

Some  one  has  let  them  know  that  they  are  being  looked  after,  and  that 
is  the  reason  for  their  change  of  tone.  They  are  frightened,  and  would, 
I  believe,  make  terms  very  moderate,  provided  they  could  be  a-ssured  of 
safety.     There  is  no  danger  of  their  going  to  Europe;  they  have  no 


THE   REAL  ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  1 93 

money,  and  Mosher's  wife  and  children  would  keep  him  here.  Of  this 
you  can  assure  Mr.  Ross,  providing  I  am  right  as  to  the  parties,  and  I 
have  no  doubt  of  it.  I  think  it  would  be  well  for  Mr.  Ross  to  keep  in 
communication  (if  possible)  with  them. 

You  can  assure  Mr.  Ross  that  I  think  there  is  no  danger  of  their  in- 
juring the  child,  or  of  their  taking  him  to  Europe,  always  providing  we 
are  on  the  right  track. 

Yours,  in  haste, 

Geo.  W.  Walling,  SupU  of  Police, 

While  the  clue  that  pointed  to  Mosher  and  Douglas 
as  being  the  criminals  was  regarded  as  the  best  which 
had  been  brought  to  the  notice  of  the  police  authori- 
ties, still,  whenever  information  was  received  of  other 
suspicious  persons  or  circumstances,  they  were  fully 
inquired  into. 

Mosher  and  Douglas  were  fugitives  from  our  city, 
and  out  of  the  jurisdiction  of  our  police;  and  all  our 
officers  could  do  was  to  assist  the  New  York  authori- 
ties, by  sending  to  them  what  information  they  could 
obtain  here  to  confirm  anything  they  learned  there. 
Officer  Doyle  and  his  companion  returned  to  New 
York  without  being  able  to  locate  Mosher's  family,  and 
Supt.  Walling  sent  for  Westervelt  on  the  i8th  of 
August,  and  endeavored  to  engage  him  to  assist  in 
finding  the  men  and  recovering  the  child.  After  con- 
sidering the  matter  for  a  few  days,  he  concluded  to 
help  him.  The  manner  and  results  of  this  assistance 
will  appear  hereafter. 

On  the  I  ith  of  September,  Supt.  Walling  wrote  to 
Capt.  Heins: 

Dear  Sir. — Since  writing  you  this  A.  M.,  I  have  seen  Westervelt ; 

he   says  he  knows  nothing  of  the  whereabouts  of  Mosher.     He  says 

Mosher  lived  in  your  city,  about  four  months  ago,  on  Monroe  street,  near 

3d  street,  and  that  he  had  a  stable  between  3d  and  4th  streets,  in  some 

9 


194  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

street  name  not  known,  but  the  third  or  fourth  street  from  Monroe  to- 
wards Washington  avenue.  The  st:)ble  was  an  old  wooden  building 
with  very  large  doors,  and  near  3d  street  ;  that  a  wagon  answering  to 
the  description  you  gave  me  was  in  said  stable  at  that  time,  and  may  be 
there  yet,  but  probably  not ;  that  they  kept  in  said  stable  a  dark  bay 
horse ;  but  he  is  confident  the  horse  has  been  sold,  but  does  not  know  to 
whom.  I  showed  him  the  drawing  of  the  wagon  you  gave  to  me,  and 
he  says  he  could  not  make  a  better  one  had  he  it  before  him,  except  that 
he  thinks  his  would  not  be  quite  so  much  rounded  at  the  top. 
Yours,  etc.. 
Signed,  Geo.  W.  Walling,  Supt. 

This  was  the  first  information  that  was  obtained  of 
the  locality  in  which  Mosher's  family  had  lived  while 
in  this  city,  and  where  he  had  kept  his  horse  and 
wagon.  By  inquiries  made  by  Capt.  Heins,  it  was 
found  that  a  family  named  Henderson  had  resided  at 
235  Monroe  street.  This  proved  to  be  the  name 
Mosher  had  assumed  when  he  came  to  Philadelphia. 
It  was  also  learned  that  Joseph  Douglas,  alias  Clark, 
had  lived  with  them,  and  that  Mosher's  wife  and  child- 
ren had  moved  to  New  York  on  the  19th  of  August. 
On  making  inquiry  for  the  stable,  it  was  found  that 
there  had  been  an  old  stable  on  Marriott's  Lane,  now 
torn  down,  and  part  of  which  Mosher,  alias  Henderson, 
had  rented,  and  there  kept  his  horse  and  wagon. 

An  explanation  seems  to  be  necessary  here,  why  the 
searches  in  July,  among  the  stables  of  the  city,  failed 
to  discover  this  stable  or  shed  in  Marriott's  Lane. 
The  facts  are  these,  as  they  were  learned  after  the  in- 
formation had  been  received  where  to  look  for  the 
stable.  It  had  been  rented  by  a  person  who  sublet 
stall  room  to  others,  and  on  the  ist  of  July  the  stable 
was  leased  by  another  man,  who  did  not  know  the  for- 
mer occupants :  so  that  when  the  officers  inquired  of 


THE    REAL   ABDUCTORS    SUSPECTED.  1 95 

him  about  the  horse  and  wagon,  he  knew  nothing 
about  it,  and  only  knew  those  persons  who  were  using 
the  stable  at  that  time ;  very  soon  afterwards  the  stable 
was  torn  down. 

It  was  deemed  important  to  find  some  of  Mosher's 
writing,  that  it  might  be  compared  with  the  letters 
received  from  the  abductors.  Capt.  Heins  succeeded 
in  finding  his  assumed  name  signed  to  a  number  of  t 
receipts ;  but  that  was  not  sufficient  to  identify  the 
writing.  Westervelt  was  asked  to  procure  a  letter  or 
any  paper  that  he  knew  Mosher  had  written;  but  de- 
clared he  did  not  know  where  to  get  any.  Efforts 
were  made  by  and  through  other  persons  to  the  same 
end,  but  without  success. 

On  the  6th  of  September,  the  following  personal  ap- 
peared in  the  New  York  Herald^  in  reply  to  the  letter 
of  August  26th  : 

John.  He  denies  the  direction  you  give.  I  require  conclusive  proof. 
Send  clothing  to  any  point  that  you  please,  and  advise. 

On  the  6th  of  September,  an  answer  was  received  as 
follows : 

[No.  18.  Postmarked  New  York,  September  6.] 
Mr.  Ros  we  cannot  see  how  yu  can  resist  the  proof  that  we  have  got 
him  notwithstanding  Walter's  contradictory  story,  yu  must  admit  he  was 
taken  by  some  one  yu  must  admit  he  was  taken  for  a  ransom  now  if  we 
have  not  got  him  who  has  got  him — has  any  one  else  asked  yu  for  a 
ransom  we  think  not.  mr.  percell  that  benevlent  man  who  offered  to 
pay  the  ransom  now  says  yu  have  never  lost  yu  child — we  know  percell 
lies  because  we  have  positive  that  we  have  him  and  yu  have  positive 
proof  that  yu  lost  him.  Mr.  Ros  in  order  to  convince  yu  that  we  have 
him  yu  require  some  of  his  cloths  sent  yu.  it  was  hinted  some  six  weeks 
ago  in  one  of  the  editorials  to  send  yu  some  of  Charly  cloths  in  answer 
to  that  we  said  we  would  never  do  anything  of  the  kind  because  we 
could  give  an  irrestible  proof  without  it — if  we  sent  you  any  cloths  we 
have  got  to  cxpres  ihcm  which  wo  wil  never  do     we  don't  know  for  cer- 


196  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

tain  welher  his  cloths  have  been  saved  up  to  the  time  wc  dont  go  near 
him  often  for  we  have  nothing  to  do  with  guarding  him  though  we  have 
seen  him  three  or  four  times  since  2d  of  July  we  told  you  in  one  of  our 
letters  that  Charley  had  never  been  in  any  way  whatever  disguised  nor  at 
that  time  he  had  not  been  but  since  then  he  has  had  his  hair  cut  short 
and  girls  clothes  put  on  him  now  wether  they  have  kept  his  cloths  or 
not  we  cannot  say  and  we  cannot  send  them  if  they  have  them  the 
probibility  is  they  have  destroyed  them  for  every  possible  precautionary 
measure  has  been  taken  since  we  have  seen  what  great  efforts  have  been 
made  to  find  his  place  of  concealment  we  were  surprised  to  think  yu 
would  make  such  efforts  to  find  him  when  we  told  yu  that  to  search  for 
him  yu  was  only  searching  for  his  life  and  any  approach  by  a  detective  to 
his  hiding  place  would  be  a  certain  sign  for  his  destruction  yu  either 
don't  believe  this  or  yu  don't  regard  the  life  of  yu  child  where  he  is 
now  confined  wil  be  his  tomb  unles  yu  bring  him  out  with  the  ransom 
yu  detectives  can  never  do  it  your  friends  who  advise  yu  that  we  wil 
set  him  free  should  you  not  ransom  him  wil  be  the  worst  advise  yu  ever 
had.  your  friends  yu  say  ask  for  more  proof  that  wc  ever  had  him  they 
are  as  foolish  as  percell  for  he  says  you  never  lost  him.  your  detectives 
have  never  had  the  slightest  clue  or  trace  of  him  since  the  our  he  was 
taken  but  in  order  to  convince  these  sceptical  friends  that  we  had  him 
and  have  him  we  will  now  give  the  detectives  a  small  clue  to  work  upon 
but  it  will  serve  no  other  end  only  to  convince  these  sceptical  friends  or 
yours  that  we  have  him.  on  the  night  of  2d  July  at  1 1  o'clock  we  passed 
through  Trenton,  N.  J.  Charley  lay  in  my  arms  asleep,  after  we  had 
passed  about  2  squares  up  bridge  st  Charley's  hat  drop  off  and  we  did 
not  notice  it  until  he  woke  up  and  asked  for  his  hat  we  would  not  go 
back  for  it.  you  can  get  this  hat  by  advertising  for  it  there  if  it  is  not 
worn  out.  if  it  should  be  worn  out  you  can  find  out  who  found  one  that 
night  or  the  next  morning,  now  ask  one  of  your  domestics  or  Mrs.  Ros 
if  Charley  did  not  have  on  the  afternoon  of  the  first  of  July  a  narrow  faded 
pink  ribbin  tied  around  his  head  to  keep  the  hear  out  of  his  eyes,  if  yu 
find  this  a  fact  which  we  have  no  doubt  yu  wil  and  as  it  was  never  de- 
scribed in  the  advertisement,  we  think  no  human  being  could  mention  it 
but  the  party  who  took  him.  if  this  does  not  saLsfy  yu  and  yu  friends 
tha'  we  have  him  then  yu  must  go  unsatisfied,  this  clue  of  the  hat  will 
end  there  when  you  find  it  and  it  wil  avail  yu  nothing  more,  let  the  de- 
tectives work  it  up  much  as  they  please,  the  clue  will  end  there  we  know 
or  we  would  not  told  of  it.  Mr.  Ros  we  dont  know  welher  yu  ever  mean 
to  ransom  yu  child  yu  certainly  dont  act  much  like  it.     but  we  do  know 


THE   REAL   ABDUCTORS   SUSPECTED.  IQ/ 

yu  will  never  get  him  without  it  unless  you  are  fortunate  enough  to  ketch 
us  knapping  and  take  him  by  stratagem,  there  is  not  one  chance  in 
10,000  of  ever  getting  him  that  way.  yu  must  not  delude  yuself  with  the 
idea  that  if  we  go  to  europe  this  month  that  we  wil  set  yu  child  free  or 
take  him  with  us  and  then  will  be  the  time  to  find  him.  that  wil  never 
be  Mr.  Ros  we  have  told  yu  befor  if  yu  ever  expect  to  get  yu  child  yu 
wil  have  to  ransom  him  and  to  the  full  amount  we  named,  if  you  deal 
fair  with  us  we  wil  deal  fair  with  yu  if  yu  play  any  tricks  with  us  we 
shall  do  likewise  with  yu.  whatever  you  do  with  us  we  shall  do  like-  * 
wise  with  yu.  whatever  yu  do  with  us  yu  must  do  it  in  good  faith  or 
not  at  all  then  yu  get  yu  child  safe  and  sound,  we  shall  not  keep  up  this 
correspondence  much  longer,  whatever  yu  mean  to  do  must  be  soon,  we 
see  the  New  York  herald  every  day  whatever  yu  have  to  say  we  wil  no- 
tice it.  we  are  now  in  lansingburg  above  Troy  New  York  we  dont  know 
where  we  shall  post  this  letter  yet  we  leave  here  to-day. 

This  letter  begins  with  an  argument  to  show  that  the 
proofs  already  given  ought  to  be  satisfactory  that  the 
writer  of  the  letters  had  taken  Charley,  notwithstand- 
ing Walter's  statement  of  the  direction  in  which  they 
went  was  contrary  to  that  which  the  abductors 
mentioned  in  their  last  letter.  They  refer  again  to 
an  advertisement,  which  was  continued  a  long  time  in 
the  New  York  Herald,  over  the  name  of  Purcell,  who 
was  not  known  to  us,  and  say  they  can  give  irresistible 
proof  that  they  have  Charley  without  sending  any 
clothing.  They  assert  that  they  had  seen  him  only 
three  or  four  times  since  the  2d  of  July,  and  that  his 
hair  had  been  cut  off,  and  girl's  clothes  put  on  him 
to  disguise  him.  They  are  surprised,  that  so  great 
efforts  have  been  made  to  find  his  place  of  conceal- 
ment, because  if  any  approach  had  been  made  to  it  by  a 
detective,  that  would  have  been  a  signal  for  the  child's 
instant  destruction.  They  claim,  however,  that  no 
detective  ever  had  the  slightest  clue  or  trace  of  him 
since  he  was  stolen,  and  defiantly  give  two  more  proofs 


198  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

that  they  took  and  still  have  him.  They  say  that 
the  chances  are  one  against  ten  thousand  of  my 
ever  getting  him,  except  by  paying  the  ransom,  and 
that  if  tlicy  go  to  Europe,  he  neither  will  be  taken  with 
them  nor  set  at  liberty,  and  again  warn  me  against 
dealing  falsely  with  them.  They  state  that  they  were 
then  in  Lansingburg,  above  Troy,  New  York ;  but  do 
not  know  where  they  will  post  this  letter,  as  they  will 
leave  that  place  on  this  day. 

The  main  points  in  this  letter  that  have  not  been  pre- 
viously stated  are  the  desire  to  satisfy  us  tliat  they 
were  the  real  abductors,  without  incurring  any  risk  of 
being  discovered.  Their  guard  on  this  point  had  been 
perfect  from  tlie  beginning,  and  continued  so,  notwith- 
standing their  many  and  long  letters.  This  fear  of  de- 
tection deterred  them  from  sending  to  us  part  of 
Charley's  clothing,  which  could  not  be  forwarded 
without  great  risk  of  affording  a  clue  to  their  hiding- 
place. 

Very  careful  and  long-continued  search  was  made  in 
Trenton  for  the  hat  which  Charley  wore,  and  which 
they  say  was  lost  there  on  the  night  of  July  2d.  Mayor 
Breist,  of  that  city,  not  only  advertised  for  it,  but  in- 
structed his  police  officers  to  inquire  for  it  at  every 
house  on  Bridge  street;  at  all  tlie  schools,  and  of 
persons  from  the  country  who  come  to  the  city  to 
attend  market;  but  it  was  not  found.  The  ribbon 
described  as  having  been  tied  around  Charley's  head 
to  keep  the  hair  out  of  his  eyes,  had  not  been  thought 
of  by  the  nurse  who  had  dressed  him  on  the  afternoon 
when  he  was  taken  away,  and  was  therefore  not  men- 
tioned in  any  description  that  had  been  given  of  his 


THE    REAL    ABDUCTORS    SUSPECTED.  1 99 

clothing.  When  our  attention  was  called  to  it  in  this 
letter,  we  found  that  his  nurse  had  used  a  narrow  pale 
pink  ribbon  edged  with  purple,  a  part  of  which  was  in 
the  house,  and  corresponded  to  the  description  in  the 
letter. 

In  all  the  previous  letters,  when  the  kidnappers  spoke 
of  having  seen  Charley,  they  said  he  had  not  been 
disguised ;  in  this  one,  however,  it  is  stated  that  it  was 
necessary,  for  the  sake  of  precaution,  to  dress  him  in 
girl's  clothing,  and  to  cut  off  his  hair ;  thus  showing 
that  with  all  their  professed  feeling  of  confidence  that 
he  could  not  be  found,  they  adopted  every  means  to 
prevent  his  being  recognized.  The  letter  of  August 
26th  was  dated  at  Albany,  and  postmarked  Rondout, 
N.  Y.  This  one  is  not  dated,  and  although  they  say 
they  were  in  Lansingburg,  above  Troy,  at  the  time  of 
writing  it,  it  bears  the  postmark  of  New  York  city. 

Bad  and  torturing  as  are  the  letters  of  the  abductors 
in  this  chapter,  yet  they  are  so  much  more  mild  in  tone 
than  any  that  had  preceded  them,  that  I  felt  a  degree 
of  relief  from  the  terrible  anxiety  which  had  been  occa- 
sioned by  the  others ;  and  having  some  confidence  that 
the  real  kidnappers  were  known,  and  that  it  could  not 
be  long  before  they  would  be  taken,  I  was  buoyed  with 
the  hope,  that  soon  our  dear  little  boy  would  be  found 
and  restored  to  his  home. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

SUGGESTIONS   FROM  SPIRITUALISTS  AND   CONVICTS — 
SEARCH    IN   TRENTON,   NEW   JERSEY. 

N  addition  to  the  ordinary  means  employed  to 
discover  the  kidnappers  and  find  Charley, 
^  almost  every  conceivable  mysterious  agency 
has  been  suggested  by  f)ersons  who  were  interested  in 
testing  diftcrent  theories,  or  who  believed  the  desired 
result  could  be  reached  by  invoking  the  aid  of  more 
subtle  influences,  and  were  desirous  to  try  their  skill  in 
unraveling  the  mystery. 

Many  persons  have  come  to  me  with  information 
said  to  be  obtained  through  the  medium  of  spirits,  sug- 
gesting that  the  matter  should  be  investigated.  But 
their  information  was  generally  so  vague  and  indefinite 
that  it  was  impossible  to  examine  it,  even  had  there 
been  a  disposition  to  do  so.  Besides,  no  two  persons 
who  had  consulted  different  mediums  gave  the  same 
direction  in  which  to  look  for  the  child. 

In  consequence  of  the  wide-spread  interest  taken  in 
the  recovery  of  Charley,  there  never  has  been  a  better 
opportunity  to  give  to  the  world  practical  evidences  of 
the  usefulness  of  either  clairvoyance  or  spiritualism 
than  this  case  affords;  and  could  the  place  in  which  the 
child  is  concealed  be  discovered  through  information 
derived  from  cither  of  these  sources,  there  would  be 

(200) 


THE  SEARCH    CONTINUED.  201 

something  substantial  for  the  faith  of  the  skeptical  to 
rest  upon. 

The  letters  received  on  these  subjects  I  can  count  by 
hundreds,  many  of  them  from  persons  who  have  not 
full  confidence  in  being  able  to  accomplish  everything; 
yet,  in  order  to  experiment,  some  ask  for  a  small  piece 
of  any  garment  worn  by  Charley,  and  not  since  washed. 

A  single  instance  will  be  given  to  show  how  persons 
who  entertain  the  belief  that  the  spirits  of  the  departed 
communicate  matters  connected  with  the  present  life  to 
professed  mediums,  and  how  they  have  utterly  failed  in 
this  case  to  reveal  anything  that  has  been  of  any  prac- 
tical benefit,  and  how  willing  the  votaries  of  said  belief 
are  to  adopt  any  theory  rather  than  acknowledge  that 
they  have  been  misled  or  deluded. 

A  gentleman  from  New  York  City  called  on  me,  and 
stated  he  had  a  great  desire  to  assist  me  in  finding  my 
little  boy ;  that  he  was  well  acquainted  with  a  lady  of 
intelligence  and  good  Christian  character,  who  was 
possessed  of  extraordinary  powers  as  a  spiritual  medi- 
um, and  that  she  had  told  him  some  remarkable  things 
in  which  he  was  personally  interested.  He  also  stated 
that  he  would  like  to  give  her  an  opportunity  of  testing 
her  powers,  in  tracing  my  little  son,  and  that  to  do  it, 
he  would  require  some  article  of  clothing  which  the 
child  had  worn.  At  first  I  declined  letting  him  have 
anything;  but  he  was  so  earnest,  and  expressed  his 
confidence  so  strongly,  that  he  would  very  soon  be  able 
to  inform  me  where  the  child  was  secreted,  or  what  had 
become  of  him,  that  I  finally  gave  him  what  he  desired. 
Before  leaving  he  said  he  would  let  me  know  from  time 
to  time  of  the  progress  made. 
9* 


202  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

The  first  letter  I  received  from  him  says  that  the 
medium  was  greatly  affected  in  the  examination,  as  the 
magnetism  or  influence  surrounding  the  child  was  ex- 
ceedingly bad ;  but  the  decision  is,  that  the  controlling 
spirit  or  influence  will  find  the  child  whether  it  is  dead 
or  alive.  The  second  letter  says,  "  The  spirit  who  has 
undertaken  this  search  has  been  very  diligent  ever  since 
the  examination  of  the  little  dress  you  gave  me.  He 
commenced  the  search  by  looking  through  the  city  of 
New  York,  and  reported  that  he  looked  in  every  house 
and  hunted  in  and  about  the  city,  and  has  continued 
the  search  night  and  day.  He  requested  me  to  say  to 
you,  not  to  go  to  any  further  expense  in  looking  for 
your  boy,  as  he  is  now  looking  for  his  remains.  He 
says  he  shall  find  them,  it  is  only  a  matter  of  time,  and 
we  are  likely  to  receive  the  information  in  regard  to  the 
fate  of  Charley  any  day.  I  suppose  all  that  I  have 
written  to  you  appears  like  the  ravings  of  a  fevered 
brain,  and  I  certainly  can  appreciate  your  views  and 
feelings,  as  you  are  not  conversant  with  the  philosophy 
of  modern  spiritualism,  or  the  laws  governing  spiritual 
communion ;  nevertheless,  what  I  have  written  are  facts, 
and  I  hope  in  a  few  days  to  present  you  with  posi- 
tive proof."  About  two  months  after  receiving  this 
letter,  of  which  the  above  is  an  extract,  I  received  the 
following,  as  the  result  of  this  interview  with  the 
spirits : 

Christian  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir : — Agreeably  to  my  promise,  made 
to  you  last  fall,  I  will  now  give  the  result  of  the  search  for  your  little  son 

by  Menomonee,  an  Indian  spirit,  through  the  medium  of  Mrs. , 

Jate  of  Chicago.  Menomonee  reports  that  he  has  found  your  little  boy  ; 
he  has  seen  and  talked  with  him  and  his  attendant  several  times ;  but  he 
is  in  the  spirit  home,  cheerful  aud  happy.     His  attendant  is  a  German 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  203 

woman,  and  a  relative  of  tlie  family,  is  about  forty-five  years  of  age,  and 
while  in  earth-life  was  a  cripple.     He  said  her  name  was  Josephine. 

I  would  Like  to  know  whether  you  recognize  the  woman  by  the 
description  given.  I  have  tested  him  many  times,  and  have  invariably 
found  him  correct.  I  would  be  pleased  to  hear  from  you,  and  if  you 
have  any  questions  to  ask,  I  will  submit  them  and  get  the  information 
you  desire,  if  possible.  I  remain  yours  with  respect. 


As  I  now  heard  for  the  first  time  that  there  was  a 
relative  of  the  family  who  was  a  German  woman  and  a 
cripple  while  living,  the  conclusion  was  that  the  only- 
point  of  the  revelation  that  could  be  tested  having 
proved  false,  the  other  parts  were  equally  unworthy  of 
belief  Besides,  if  the  child  was  deceased,  they  failed 
to  say  where  his  remains  were  to  be  found. 

The  field  for  the  search  has  been  so  wide  that  mys- 
tics of  all  kinds  have  offered  their  services,  or  volun- 
tarily sent  the  results  of  their  mysterious  processes. 
Astrologers,  fortune-tellers,  dreamers,  somnambulists — 
in  fact  there  can  scarcely  be  named  a  secret  profession, 
from  some  of  whose  believers  I  have  not  received  com- 
munications, asking  me  to  test  its  powers.  In  a  few 
instances  letters  have  been  received  so  carefully  written 
that  it  was  impossible  to  determine  whether  the  persons 
writing  them  did  or  did  not  have  reliable  information. 
A  case  of  this  kind  occurred  that  caused  considerable 
trouble  and  expense.  A  letter  from  one  of  the  Western 
States  was  sent  to  the  Mayor  of  the  city,  which  is  as 
follows : 

Mayor  of  the  City  of  Philadelphia. 

Sir  : — If  Mr.  Christian  K.  Ross  will  consult  me,  he  can  hear  some- 
thing to  his  advantage  in  regard  to  his  lost  son.  No  money  asked. 
Apply  immediately  by  letter.  ■ . 

To  which  I  replied,  asking  the  person  to  write  to  me 


204  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

what  information  she  had,  and  received  the  following 
answer : 

Mr.  Christian  K.  Ross.— Dfar  Sir:— Yonr  letter  is  at  hand. 
Your  child  is  alive  and  in  good  health  now.  He  is  in  Middlesex  county. 
New  Jersey.  He  is  with  a  person  who  lives  on  or  near  Raritan  Bay. 
You  can  find  your  child  by  going  to  New  Brunswick.  Be  cautious  in 
your  search.  He  is  near  the  mountains,  and  within  seven  miles  of  New 
Brunswick,  in  a  northeasterly  direction  from  the  town.  The  child  has 
been  in  various  places ;  but  most  of  the  time  near  to  Staten  Island,  and 
Sandy  Point,  and  Amboy.  He  is  among  a  nest  of  smugglers,  whose  line 
of  business  lies  along  the  Raritan  and  Delaware  rivers.  The  fear  of 
l>eing  punished  for  the  crime  has  caused  them  to  detain  the  child.  Start 
to  look  for  him  on  the  7th  or  13th  of  April,  and  you  will  find  out,  and 
your  boy  will  be  found.  Have  you  ever  searched  in  that  part  of  the 
country  ?    From  one  who  wishes  to  befriend  you. 

Signed,  

In  my  answer  to  the  above  letter  I  inquired  how  the 
writer  acquired  the  information  she  professed  to  have, 
and  asked  for  more  specific  directions  to  make  the 
search  for  the  child.     To  which  she  replied  as  follows : 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — D^ar  Sir: — ^Your  letter  is  at  hand.  As  to  how  I 
obtained  the  information  I  cannot  tell  you ;  as  much  depends  on  this 
mystery ;  but  I  will  explain  all  when  you  have  your  child  with  you  safe 
at  home.     I  do  not  mean  for  you  to  search  all  over  the  country.     Do 

not  take  out  a  search  warrant.     Sec  a  man  by  the  name  of living 

northwest  of  the  Raritan  Bay.  The  child  will  be  found  out  on  the  high- 
way, about  seven  miles  northwest  of  Raritan  Bay,  in  a  mountainous 
country,  and  not  far  from  a  cave  or  mine.  This  portion  of  the  country 
is  not  often  frequented  by  strangers,  and  the  child  is  allowed  outdoor 
privileges.  In  regard  to  this  affair,  go  on  the  13th  of  May.  May  God 
crown  your  journey  with  success. 

Yours  with  respect, . 

The  only  thing  that  excited  any  suspicion  that  the 
letters  were  written  by  a  person  who  was  practicing 
some  kind  of  fortune-telling,  was  that  a  certain  day  was 
fixed  on  which  to  start  on  the  search.  The  locality 
named  has  always  been  regarded  as  one  to  which  tlie 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  20$ 

child  might  have  been  taken,  and  two  of  the  letters 
from  the  abductors  were  dated  New  Brunswick.  Its 
geography  was  correctly  described,  and  many  points  in 
her  letters  gave  reason  for  a  belief  that  her  information 
might  have  been  obtained  from  some  one  residing  in 
northern  New  Jersey.  Nevertheless  I  wrote,  asking 
her  in  good  faith  to  give  me  the  source  of  her  informa- 
tion, whether  obtained  through  a  spiritualistic  or  any 
other  mysterious  agency.  At  the  same  time  I  wrote 
to  the  sheriff  of  the  county,  making  inquiry  of  him 
about  the  writer.  From  the  woman  I  received  the  fol- 
lowing reply: 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir  : — Your  letter  is  at  hand.  With  regard 
to  a  medium,  I  know,  nothing  of  the  nature  of  such ;  had  I  not  known 
what  I  was  talking  about,  I  should  not  have  written  to  you.  Not  having 
asked  a  fee  for  my  information,  I  was  actuated  solely  by  sympathy  with 
a  mother  in  such  a  sad  event.  Had  you  placed  confidence  in  what  I 
wrote  you,  there  would  have  been  no  cause  for  regret ;  and  not  thinking 
it  necessary  to  write  to  you  any  more,  I  will  close  by  expressing  kindest 
sympathy.  Yours  truly, . 

On  receiving  this  letter  I  went  to  New  Brunswick, 
and  with  the  chief  of  police  of  that  city  and  a  detective, 
started  on  a  tour  to  find  if  possible  the  person  named  in 
her  letter.  After  several  days'  travel  along  the  Raritan 
river  and  the  mountains  above  New  Brunswick,  we  re- 
turned without  finding  the  person;  but  continued  the 
search  through  the  mining  region  of  New  Jersey,  until 
we  became  satisfied  that  no  strange  child  had  been 
brought  there.  About  a  month  after  writing  to  the 
sheriff,  I  received  an  answer  from  him,  saying  that  the 
woman  who  had  written  to  me  had  some  reputation  as 
a  fortune-teller,  and  in  some  cases  had  divined  very 
successfully.     He  said  she  had  not  traveled  much,  and 


206  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

knew  little  of  localities  except  what  she  had  learned 
from  history  and  geography,  but  that  her  memory  was 
very  good.  Thus  by  the  cunning  of  this  woman  in 
declining  to  give  the  way  by  which  she  had  received 
her  professed  information,  it  became  necessary  to  exam- 
ine into  her  reports,  as  nothing  presenting  the  smallest 
appearance  of  the  most  remote  probability  has  been  per- 
mitted to  pass  by  without  thorough  investigation. 

My  first  and  only  visit  to  a  professional  fortune-teller 
was  in  connection  with  this  search,  and  was  brought 
about  in  the  following  way.  I  received  a  letter  from 
New  York  City  written  in  German,  and  in  very  good 

handwriting.     Translated,  it  reads  as  follows: 

New  York. 
Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Since  the  first  announcement  of  the  abduction  of 
your  son,  I  have  daily  perused  the  reports  in  the  papers  bearing  on  the 
case  with  great  interest,  and  among  other  matters  I  noticed  that  different 
persons  professed,  either  by  letter  or  personally,  to  render  assistance  for 
the  recovery  of  the  child.  But,  probably  for  fear  of  humbug,  or  perhaps 
at  the  suggestion  of  the  police,  or  for  other  causes,  you  have  refused  to 
accept  any  of  their  services,  thinking,  no  doubt,  that  these  persons  had 
nothing  but  their  own  pecuniary  interest  in  view.  In  consequence  of 
these  suppositions,  on  my  part  I  concluded  to  wait  until  quietness  had 
been  restored  in  your  family,  prior  to  making  the  following  propositions 
for  the  recovery  of  your  child.  I  do  this  to  dispel  any  idea  of  humbug 
that  you  may  entertain.  I  have,  for  years,  devoted  myself  to  the  study 
of  Mesmerism,  and  have  found  that  the  thoughts  of  mankind  are  brought 
into  unison  by  it ;  on  the  one  hand  soothing  and  hopeful,  and  on  the 
other  just  the  reverse,  providing  you  formally  believe  in  the  same. 
Should  you  decide  to  accept,  it  will  be  necessary  to  see  you  personally 
and  have  a  consultation.     Awaiting  your  answer, 

I  am  yours  very  respectfully, . 

The  neighborhood  in  New  York  from  which  the  let- 
ter came  has  always  been  regarded  as  suspicious,  and 
it  was  thought  that  possibly  an  effort  might  be  made 
through  some  such  means  as  this  letter  indicated  to 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  20/ 

negotiate  for  the  return  of  the  child.     For  these  rea- 
sons, I  replied  to  to  it  as  follows  : 

Philadelphia. 
Madam. — I  have  no  knowledge  of  the  science  of  Mesmerism,  and 
would  like  to  know  more  about  it  before  making  experiments.    You  will 
favor  me  by  giving  fuller  explanation. 

Respectfully  yours,  C.  K.  Ross. 

I  received  in  return  a  long  letter  written  in  English. 
The  substance  of  it  was,  that  she  did  not  practice  mes- 
merism, there  was  an  error  in  translating;  it  should 
have  been  sympathy ^  which  she  described  as  the  firm 
belief  on  and  in  something  that  we  would  like  to  knov/ 
or  find,  and  if  minds  can  be  brought  into  unison,  we 
may,  when  everything  else  fails,  get  a  clue  and  find  the 
object  we  desire.     An  incident  is  related  of  aid  given  to 
a  lady  in  recovering  a  son  who  had  been  lost  for  seven 
years.     The  letter  closes  by  saying,  "  Should  you  wish 
to  try  this,  you  are  to  come  here,  as  I  do  not  intend  to 
charge  you  anything  until  you  find  some  positive  traces 
of  your  child,  when  the  reward  .shall  be  left  entirely 
with  you.     Hoping  you  will   not  misunderstand  me." 
To  this  letter  I  made  no  reply,  as  it  did  not  enlighten 
me  in  regard  either  to  mesmerism  or  sympathy.     But 
being  in  New  York  with  a  detective  officer,  in  .passing 
through  the  neighborhood  where  the  writer  of  these 
letters  lived,  I  proposed  to  the  officer  to  call  on  her,  and 
tiy  to  find  out  if  she  knew  anything  that  might  be  of 
use  to  us.     I  had  forgotten  her  name  and  the  street ; 
but  by  inquiry  we  soon  found  that  a  person  believed  to 
be  a  fortune-teller  had  moved  into  the  neighborhood 
very  recently,  and  had  her  name  on  a  small  sign.     The 
person  giving  us  the  information  remarked,  "  These  peo- 
ple only  put  up  the  name,  as  it  is  again.st  the  law  to  tell 


208  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

their  business  on  a  sign."  Finding  the  sign,  and  recog- 
nizing the  name  we  sought,  the  officer  knocked  at  the 
basement  front  door;  there  was  no  response;  we  entered 
the  hall,  and  knocked  at  the  first  door  after  entering, 
and  got  no  reply.  The  officer  went  to  the  next  door 
and  knocked,  and  at  the  same  time  opened  the  door 
and  walked  in — I  followed ;  before  I  got  into  the  room 
I  heard  a  voice  saying,  "  Get  out  of  this,  go  into  the 
next  room,  I'll  soon  be  there."  We  at  once  complied, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  the  old  woman  made  her  appear- 
ance. I  introduced  myself,  and  told  her  that  I  desired 
to  know  in  what  way  she  proposed  to  aid  me  in  recov- 
ering my  little  son.  She  said  that  she  could  not  speak 
very  good  English;  but  would  explain  the  way  the  best 
she  could.  She  said,  '*  You  must  believe  that  there  is  a 
sympathy  exists  between  you  and  your  child.  I  pro- 
pose to  use  that  to  bring  him  back."  She  then  de- 
sired me  to  give  the  full  name  and  date  of  the  birth  of 
the  child,  and  after  finishing  her  story  said  she  had 
written  another  letter  for  me,  and  handing  it  to  me  said, 
"Do  you  believe  I  can  do  what  I  say?"  I  replied,  "No, 
but  I  would  like  to  ask  you  some  questions."  I  asked 
her  where  she  had  lived  before  coming  to  this  house, 
whether  she  knew  several  persons  whom  I  named;  and 
finding  she  knew  nothing  of  practical  use,  I  left  her, 
promising  on  my  return  home  to  read  her  letter  and 
reply  to  it,  which  I  did  as  follows: 

Philadelphia. 
Madam. — As  I  promised  yesterday  to  reply  to  the  letter  you  handed 
me,  after  I  had  it  translated,  I  now  fulfil  my  promise.  As  I  understand, 
by  your  conversation  as  well  as  by  your  letteps,  you  require  that  I  shindd 
believe  in  the  system  or  process  by  which  you  purpose  to  restore  my 
child,  I  confess  I  have  not  a  particle  of  faith  in  charms,  astrology,  or  any 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  2O9 

system  that  professes  to  obtain  knowledge  of  things  unknown  or  con- 
cealed.    I  do  not  believe  that  God  reveals  to  professionals  more  than  to 
others,  if  as  much.     Thanking  you  for  your  expressions  of  sympathy, 
I  am  yours,  C.  K.  Ross. 

There  is  one  letter  in  my  possession  which,  I  sup- 
pose, relates  to  that  which  might  properly  be  called 
witchcraft.  It  certainly  advises  a  very  curious  mode 
to  defeat  the  abductors  in  their  purposes  and  to  recover 
Charley.  It  is  written  in  German  and  the  translation 
is  as  follows : 

Dear  Friend. — In  your  present  situation  I  am  deeply  touched,  and, 
if  possible,  will  render  you  my  assistance  to  regain  your  child.  I  have 
read  in  a  small  book  how  the  robbers  wanted  to  extort  money  from  you. 
If  you  follow  my  advice  you  shall  have  your  child,  without  any  ransom, 
in  a  very  short  time.  But  you  must  have  faith  in  the  works  of  God, 
which  will  result  in  the  restoration  of  your  flesh  and  blood. 

Buy  a  spring  chicken  that  has  not  laid  an  egg  (but  do  not  buy  it  of  a 
Woman) ;  kill  the  chicken  at  night,  without  being  seen  or  heard ;  cut  out 
the  chicken's  heart  on  Friday,  but  nothing  else.  Take  the  heart  in  the 
left  hand.  You  must  first  lay  seven  skewers  (new)  on  the  table.  Hold 
the  heart  in  the  left  hand  and  run  around  the  table.  Then  take  one 
skewer  with  the  right  hand,  in  the  name  of  God,  the  Father^  Son  and 
Holy  Ghost,  then  pierce  the  skewer  from  the  top  through  the  middle 
of  the  heart,  and  say  "  As  I  am  piercing  the  heart  of  an  innocent  hen  by 
this  thrust,  so  shall  the  thrust  pierce  the  heart  of  the  guilty  robber  who 
took  my  flesh  and  blood." 

The  second  skewer  you  have  to  pierce  through  the  front  part  of  the 
heart,  and  say,  "  This  thrust  shall  pierce  the  robber's  soul,  until  there  is 
restored  what  I  have  lost."  The  third  skewer  you  pierce  through  the 
heart  and  say,  "  You  daring  robber,  if  you  intend  to  live  you  have  to  give 
back  to  me  my  (here  you  add  the  name  of  the  boy).  The  fourth  skewer 
you  pierce  from  the  other  side  and  say,  "  It  stands  to  you,  robber,  for  life 
or  death ;  what  is  not  thine  is  mine."  The  fifth  skewer  from  the  bottom 
of  the  heart,  and  say,  "  Five  wounds  Jesus  was  carrying,  and  you  robbers 
shall  be  stricken  by  them,  in  the  name  of  God  the  Father,  Son  and  Holy 
Ghost:' 

Sixth  skewer  pierce  from  the  top  of  the  right  side  and  say,  "  The  inno- 
cent chicken's  blood  shall  bring  your  deeds  to  light."     The  seventh 


2IO  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

skewer  from  the  top  of  left  side  and  say,  "  Seven  pierces  shall  have  your 
heart  until  you  restore  the  little  child,  which  you  have  taken ;  and  if  you 
do  not  do  so  you  shall  fall  away  like  Boricates  and  that  tree  which 
God  cursed." 

Dear  Friend  Ross,  if  you  do  as  I  have  written  to  you,  they  must  give 
you  back  your  own  flesh  and  blood  within  twenty-one  days,  for  the  rob- 
bers will  fall  away  and  find  no  rest. 

After  you  have  pierced  the  heart  with  seven  skewers,  you  must  bum  it 
the  same  night,  just  when  the  clock  strikes  twelve — throw  it  in  the  fire  in 
the  name  of  the  Father^  Son  and  Holy  Ghost.     Amen. 

But  nobody  must  know  anything  about  it  but  God  alone.  If  it  is  God's 
will,  you  shall  have  your  child  within  the  stated  time,  and  should  you 
not  have  it  within  the  twenty-one  days,  do  the  same  as  first  mentioned,  but 
with  the  power  of  the  devil,  and  you  will  have  your  child  sure.  That 
person  who  stole  your  child  comes  in  your  store  a  great  deal  to  find  out 
what  you  say  and  do ;  therefore  be  very  quiet,  so  that  he  cannot  work 
against  this  undertaking.  When  you  have  your  child  restored,  then  I 
will  learn  about  it.  I  shall  make  myself  known,  and  let  you  know  who 
helped  you.  I  have  already  helped  a  great  many  persons.  Sending 
you  my  best  respects,  and  hoping  you  will  have  courage  that  nothing 
will  happen  to  you.  Your  most  obt  servant, . 

These  few  incidents  and  letters  have  been  introduced 
to  show  that  persons  entertaining  every  kind  and  shade 
of  opinion,  regarding  the  finding  out  of  hidden  things, 
have  been  interested  in  trying,  by  their  own  peculiar 
way,  to  discover  where  Charley  may  be  concealed. 
Moreover,  it  is  proper  to  mention  them,  as  forming 
part  of  my  narrative. 

A  very  large  proportion  of  persons  of  these  classes, 
who  have  called  upon  me  to  offer  their  services,  or  to 
recommend  me  to  see  others  supposed  to  be  skilled  in 
their  profession,  were  not  professionals  themselves,  but 
were  actuated  by  sincere  motives  to  render  assistance 
in  the  search.  So  in  all  the  correspondence  with  these 
persons,  the  same  expressions  of  kindness,  sympathy, 
and  honesty  of  purpose  are  manifested;   and  answers 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  211 

have  generally  been  sent,  either  by  forwarding  a  circular 
and  photograph,  or  by  writing,  to  let  them  know  their 
letters  were  received  and  their  interest  in  the  case  ap- 
preciated. We  have  felt  that  respect  was  due  to  all 
who  had  taken  enough  interest  to  write  us,  whatever 
their  views  might  be  as  to  the  best  way  to  discover  the 
kidnappers,  or  to  find  the  child. 

Many  convicts,  confined  in  jails  and  penitentiaries, 
who  had  learned  some  of  the  facts  concerning  the 
abduction,  and  the  great  interest  felt  everywhere  to 
discover  the  perpetrators  of  the  deed,  claimed  to  be 
able  to  tell  who  were  the  abductors,  or  where  Charley 
could  be  found.  These  men  generally  withheld  the 
important  part  of  the  information  which  they  professed 
to  have,  hoping  thus  to  obtain  a  pardon,  or  be  released 
from  confinement,  before  giving  all  the  points ;  but 
when  their  stories  were  obtained  and  sifted,  they  proved, 
in  every  instance,  to  be  either  wholly  false  or  in  no 
way  relating  to  my  case.  Several  instances  of  this 
kind  occurred,  to  which  some  interest  is  attached. 

A  man  confined  in  Sing  Sing  prison,  writes  to  the 
Chief  of  Police  of  this  city  as  follows  : 

Sing  Sing  Prison,  September  '/th,  1874. 
Mr.  Kennard  H.  Jones. — Dear  Sir: — I  write  this  letter  to  let  you 
know  that  I  am  sure  that  I  know  the  getter-up  of  the  Ross  case,  and 
when  you  read  my  statement  you  cannot  deny  that  I  have  just  reasons 
tor  my  belief.  Some  time  ago  I  was  in  your  city,  and  I  was  there  to 
help  to  steal  a  child.  There  was  another  man  and  myself  in  the  plot. 
The  man  to  whom  I  refer  was  the  one  who  wanted  me  to  go  into  it. 
I'll  admit  that  I  would  have  gone  into  it  if  everything  had  been  carried 
on  in  my  way.  My  plan  was  to  leave  the  child  where  some  one  could 
pick  her  up,  if  we  could  not  get  the  money  out  of  the  parents.  The 
man  who  was  at  the  head  of  the  job  did  not  wish  to  let  the  child  go, 
and  gave  me  the  following  reasons :     "If  we  place  the  child  on  the  street 


212  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

so  that  some  one  can  pick  her  up  and  return  her  to  her  parents,  it  will 
kill  us  in  the  next  job.  If  the  parents  of  this  child  don't  come  down,  it's 
my  intention  to  give  the  next  child's  parents  warning,  that  it  will  be 
better  for  them  to  settle  at  once,  for  if  they  do  not,  their  child  will  find 
the  same  end  as  the  former  stolen  child."  It  is  needless  for  me  to  give 
you  the  rest  of  his  plans.  It  is  enough  to  tell  you  that  his  intentions 
were  to  put  the  child  out  of  the  way,  or,  in  plain  words,  to  kill  it.  This 
was  too  much  for  me,  for  although  I  am  as  hard  as  the  general  run  of 
cross  men,  etc.  If  this  party  had  the  least  doubt  of  me  going  back  on 
the  job,  I  know  full  well  that  he  never  would  have  told  me  his  inten- 
tions. He  had  good  reasons  for  thinking  me  his  man  for  any  kind  of  a 
job,  for  I  was  just  out  of  prison,  and  he  knew  that  I  was  ready  to  go 
into  almost  anything  that  would  bring  me  a  good  stake,  etc.,  etc. 

Now  I  am  so  sure  of  this  being  the  same  man,  that  I  am  willing  to  get 
a  whipping  if  my  story  don't  turn  out  true.  I  assure  you  the  boys  do 
get  their  jackets  dusted  here  if  they  don't  behave.  I  don't  want  to  get 
mine  cleaned,  so  you  can  depend  on  every  word  I  write  in  this  letter, 
etc. 

There  is  a  reward  of  $20,ocx>  offered  by  the  city  of  Philadelphia  It 
is  a  big  sum  of  money,  and  some  men  would  do  almost  anything  to  get 
it ;  as  for  myself  I  don't  care  a  straw  for  it,  but  my  liberty  I  prize  greatly. 
So  if  you  will  guarantee  to  pay  the  warden  of  Sing  Sing  Prison  15,000, 
and  do  your  best  to  procure  my  pardon  for  the  sixteen  months  that  I 
have  yet  to  stay  here,  I  will  give  the  name  of  the  man  I  refer  to.  I  do 
not  ask  this  until  you  arrest  the  party  and  recover  thr  child.  I  would 
advise  you  to  let  no  one  know  anything  about  this  letter,  except  those 
you  can  depend  upon.         Your  humble  servant, . 

This  letter  was  sent  to  Supt.  Walling,  who  instructed 
Capt.  Hedden  to  investigate  the  matter.  Capt.  Hed- 
den  reports  as  follows : 

New  York,  Sept.  ig,  1874. 

K.  N.  Jones,  Chief  of  Police,  Vnii^K.—Dear  5;>/— Supt.  Walling 
placed  your  letter,  in  relation  to  Brown,  in  my  hands,  and  I,  this  day, 
went  to  Sing  Sing  and  saw  him.  The  man  whom  he  suspects  is  WTiite. 
Brown  was  in  your  city  summer  before  last,  and  was  acquainted  with 
"White ;  and  in  October  of  that  year.  White  put  up  a  job  to  steal  a  child 
belonging  to  a  wealthy  family.  The  child  was  taken  on  pleasant  days 
to  a  park  by  a  servant  girl.  White  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  girl, 
and  used  to  treat  her  while  she  was  out  with  the  child.     It  was  planned 


THE  SEARCH    CONTINUED.  21 3 

for  Brown  to  carry  the  child  ofF,  while  White  diverted  the  attention  of 
the  girl.  Brown  got  frightened,  and  the  job  fell  through.  White  told 
him  that  he  had  another  similar  job  on  hand ;  but  that  he  awaited  this 
one  to  be  done  first.  White  lived  three  years  ago  in  your  city.  A  De- 
tective has  been  to  see  him,  and  has  written  to  him  that  AVhite  could  not 
be  the  man,  because  he  (White)  has  been  in  a  lunatic  asylum  for  five 
months.  I  wish  you  would  let  me  know,  through  Supt.  Walling,  if 
White  is  in  an  asylum  or  not,  and  how  he  came  there.  If  there  is  any- 
thing else  you  wish  to  find  out  from  Brown,  I  will  see  him  again. 

Respectfully  Yours,  Henry  Hedden,  Capt.  13th  Div, 

There  is  a  striking  similarity  in  the  plan  proposed 
for  the  abduction  of  a  child  and  getting  a  ransom,  in 
the  letter  of  Brown  to  the  Chief  of  Police,  to  that 
adopted  by  the  real  abductors;  but  the  person  ac- 
cused of  suggesting  the  plan  had  been  in  an  asylum  a 
long  time  before  the  abduction. 

I'  received  a  letter  from  Iowa  so  badly  written  that 
it  is  difficult  to  understand  what  the  writer  intended  to 
say.  The  substance  of  it,  however,  is  that  the  writer 
knows  where  my  son  is,  and  wants  me  to  come  and 
see  him  iinmediately;  that  my  coming  to  see  him 
will  be  the  only  way  to  find  him. 

An  answer  was  sent,  asking  more  definite  informa- 
tion, and  a  second  letter  received,  acknowledging  the 
receipt  of  my  note,  and  insisting  I  should  go  to  Iowa, 
and  he  would  tell  me  all  about  the  child,  and  that  un- 
less I  saw  him,  I  should  never  know  any  more 

This  last  letter  I  enclosed  to  the  sheriff  of  the  county, 
and  asked  him  if  he  knew  the  writer,  and  if  so  to  find 
out  whether  he  had  any  information  that  would  justify 
me  in  going  to  Iowa.  The  sheriff  returned  the  letter 
with  the  following  endorsement:  "The  man  who  wrote 
the  within  letter  is  confined  in  jail  here  on  a  charge  of 
murder,  and  has  been  sentenced  to  be  hung  for  the 


214  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

crime.  He  is  regarded  in  the  community  as  a  notori- 
ous liar;  he  is  well  known  by  all  the  officers  and  lead- 
ing citizens  about  here,  and  would  not  be  believed  by 
any  one  under  oath.  It  is  next  to  impossible  for  him 
to  speak  the  truth.  Don't  give  yourself  any  uneasiness 
on  account  of  what  he  says."  This  man  does  not  ap- 
pear to  have  had  any  motive  in  writing  to  me,  and  the 
only  purpose  seems  to  have  been  to  indulge  in  the  habit 
of  which  the  sheriff  accused  him. 

Another  man  confined  in  Auburn  prison,  New  York, 
stated  that  he  formerly  associated  with  Mosher,  and 
knew  his  haunts,  habits,  and  associates,  and  he  could 
find  Charley  Ross;  insisting  that  it  was  necessary  for 
him  to  be  released  from  prison  to  make  a  personal 
search.  However,  when  pressed  by  the  officers  to  give 
some  evidence  of  his  ability  to  accomplish  what  he  pro- 
posed to  do,  he  utterly  failed  to  convince  them  that  he 
knew  anything  about  the  matter.  The  statements  made 
by  prisoners  have  always  been  regarded  as  unreliable; 
but  particular  care  has  been  taken  to  sift  them,  and  find 
out  the  motives  that  prompted  them.  No  prisoner, 
however,  has  been  found  who  could  give  the  least  in- 
formation about  the  abductors,  except  such  points  as 
could  be  learned  from  the  newspapers. 

On  the  14th  of  September,  the  following  personal  was 
published  in  the  New  York  Herald: 

John — Ilat  not  found.     Am  ready  to  pay  sum  demanded,  but  only 
through  an  attorney.     He  dare  not  betray  you.     Name  one  anjrwhere. 

To  this  the  following  letter  was  received  in  reply, 
September  25  th : 

[No.  19.] 
New  Haven,  Sept.  23.— J/r.  A*w.— we  did  not  see  yu  last  answer  til 
to  day.     wc  was  in  new  brunswic  british  province  and  cold  not  sec  the 


THE  SEARCH   CONTINUED.  21 5 

New  York  herald  we  went  there  to  se  if  the  law  would  permit  us  to 
make  a  symultaneous  change  with  yu  but  we  find  no  such  change  can 
be  efected  with  safety  to  our  selves,  you  ask  to  transact  the  bisiness 
through  an  attorney  this  is  to  absurd  to  think  of  for  one  minute  that  man 
does  not  exist  that  we  cold  tiust  to  receive  that  money  but  one  of  our 
own  party  and  we  are  not  wiling  that  one  of  our  party  shall  become  rec- 
ognizable by  any  living  person,  as  we  now  stand  we  can  confront  any 
one  with  impunity  and  are  determined  to  keep  so.  if  you  be  convinced 
that  we  have  him  and  want  to  ransom  him  why  did  you  not  agree  to  our 
proposition,  we  have  told  yu  if  the  money  was  lost  in  transit  tu  us  it 
would  be  our  los  should  yu  folow  our  instructions  and  yu  get  yu  child, 
Mr.  Ros  we  cannot  show  the  child  to  yu  and  we  cannot  give  you  any 
more  proof  than  we  have ;  yu  must  except  this  as  the  only  alternitive 
left  you  to  ransom  him  or  murder  him,  for  one  or  the  other  wil  and  shal 
take  place  before  many  days.  Yu  as  his  father  have  been  mor  cruel  to 
him  than  we  have.  We  told  yu  that  his  place  of  cencealment  was  such 
that  no  living  being  could  find  it  and  that  it  was  not  a  fit  place  for  any 
one  to  be  in  the  length  of  time  he  has  been  there.  We  do  not  keep  him 
there  to  punish  him ;  your  detectives  have  made  it  much  worse  for  him 
than  he  would  be  had  they  not  such  a  close  search  for  him ;  he  has  kept 
his  health  wonderful  considering  his  close  confinement.  We  do  not  see 
him  often  or  even  hear  from  him.  The  last  time  we  se  him  he  had 
been  ailing  with  pain  from  stoppage  of  urin  he  would  go  24  and  30 
ours  without  making  water  and  then  he  would  cry  with  pane  when  he 
would  urinate,  but  his  custodian  got  him  som  medicine  which  helped 
him.  we  tel  yu  positively  Mr.  Ros  his  hiding  place  must  be  his  tomb 
unless  you  bring  him  out  with  the  ransom  for  we  have  a  settled  plan  to 
act  upon  and  we  shal  never  digress  from  it  and  that  is  death  or  ransom. 
Yu  will  find  we  speak  truth  in  this  for  once  if  yu  compel  us  to  put  him 
to  death  yu  shall  receive  a  letter  in  24  ours  after,  wher  yu  wil  find  his 
body,  as  soon  as  we  cop  another  kid  and  it  wil  be  a  millionaire  this 
time  your  child  must  die.  we  wil  then  see  if  he  wil  be  so  heartless  as 
to  let  his  child  die.  you  detectives  perhaps  tel  yu  that  yu  wil  pay  yu 
money  and  get  no  child  then  but  we  dont  do  bisiness  in  that  way  we 
dont  want  him  much  longer  neither  dead  or  alive,  if  yu  pay  for  him 
yu  shall  have  him  safe  and  sound,  if  not  yu  shal  have  him  dead,  so 
you  can  rest  assured  yu  wil  get  him  soon  one  way  or  the  other,  if  die 
he  must  yu  shal  se  that  he  has  been  dead  but  a  few  ours  when  yu  git  him 
then  yu  can  thank  yu  friends  for  their  kind  advise.  Ros  this  is  the  last 
advise  we  wil  offer  yu  if  yu  reject  it  yu  can  make  up  yu  mind  that  the 


2l6  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

day  of  grace  is  forever  lost  to  save  your  child.  Ros  if  yu  want  to  save 
yu  child  yu  must  comply  with  our  terms  and  yu  yourself  be  our  Attorney 
for  we  wil  have  no  other  and  we  are  absolutely  determined  on  that 
point,  when  yu  see  fit  to  change  yu  money  for  yu  child  in  the  way  we 
direct  yu  can  answer  this  through  the  herald  personal  New  York,  we 
shall  keep  up  this  unnessary  correspondence  no  longer  your  asking  for 
more  evidence  that  we  have  him  looks  to  us  as  if  it  was  a  scheme  of  Mr. 
Haines  to  entrap  us,  but  mr  hains  will  never  have  that  pleasure  Mr  Ros 
you  must  be  convinced  by  this  time  that  no  reward  however  large  can 
effect  or  influence  our  party  we  told  yu  this  at  the  first  and  we  told  yu 
how  hopelessly  it  was  for  yu  to  search  for  him  when  we  had  taken  such 
great  labor  to  find  a  suitable  place  to  conceal  him  and  the  imposebility 
for  any  one  to  find  him  in  our  possession  when  we  have  it  fixed  so  we 
can  lanch  him  into  eternity  at  an  instant's  warning,  and  yet  yu  consent 
that  a  reward  shall  be  offered  to  induce  some  one  who  has  no  right  to 
approach  his  hiding  place  but  perhaps  yu  look  upon  this  as  romance  or 
fiction  yet  fiction  is  sometimes  more  stranger  than  truth.  Ros — yu 
should  be  your  own  counciler  in  getting  yu  child  and  then  let  the  detec- 
tives council  yu  how  to  get  us,  take  our  advice  for  once  and  se  if  we  do 
not  give  you  the  best  council — that  is  get  yu  child  at  any  price  on  any 
terms  we  offer  yu  regardless  of  all  other  advise — we  have  told  yu  and 
now  repeat  it  that  this  thing  is  drawing  to  a  final  crises.  Mr  Ros  when 
yu  conclude  to  act  as  our  atty  and  meet  us  on  our  terms  then  yu  can 
answer  this  as  directed  we  shal  henceforth  notice  nothing  else  from  yu. 

The  interval  between  the  publication  of  the  last  per- 
sonal and  the  date  of  the  letter  in  reply  to  it,  the  ab- 
ductors say  was  caused  by  their  having  visited  New 
Brunswick,  in  the  British  Provinces,  to  learn  whether  a 
simultaneous  exchange  could  be  made  there.  They 
profess  to  have  been  satisfied  that  this  could  not  be  ac- 
complished. They  decline  to  act  through  an  attorney, 
and  assert  that  they  will  not  confide  in  any  one,  believ- 
ing they  are  secure  from  detection,  but  will  keep  their 
own  secret.  In  answer  to  the  first  part  of  our  personal, 
"  Hat  not  found,"  they  refuse  to  send  any  other  proof 
than  those  already  given  that  they  have  Charley,  and 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  21/ 

state  that  unless  I  ransom  him  I  will  be  his  mur- 
derer. They  re-assert  that  his  place  of  concealment  is 
not  a  fitting  place  for  any  one  to  be  in  for  any  length 
of  time;  yet  he  is  not  kept  in  it  to  punish  him,  but  of 
necessity,  in  consequence  of  the  close  search  which  has 
been  made  for  him.  They  say  his  health  has  not  been 
injured  by  his  close  confinement,  but  he  had  suffered 
temporarily  from  a  complaint  incident  to  childhood; 
that  his  place  of  concealment  will  be  his  tomb,  unless 
ransomed,  as  they  have  a  settled  plan  to  carry  out,  from 
which  they  will  not  deviate;  should  he  not  be  ran- 
somed, he  will  certainly  be  put  to  death,  and  that  within 
twenty-four  hours  after  I  shall  know  where  to  find  his 
body. 

They  profess  to  be  arranging  to  steal  another  child, 
and  when  that  is  done  my  child  must  die,  so  that  they 
can  refer  to  his  death  in  order  to  intimidate  the  parents 
into  paying  the  ransom.  They  suspect  that  the  asking 
for  more  evidence  that  they  have  Charley  is  a  scheme 
of  Captain  Heins,  who  the  writer  asserts  shall  never  have 
the  pleasure  of  entrapping  them.  They  repeat  that  the 
place  in  which  the  child  is  secreted  has  been  selected 
with  great  care,  and  it  is  impossible  for  any  one  to  find 
him;  it  is  so  arranged  that  at  a  moment's  warning  he 
can  be  destroyed  without  the  possibility  of  their  ever 
being  discovered.  They  advise  me  to  redeem  Charley, 
regardless  of  what  others  may  say,  and  after  that  to 
allow  the  detectives  to  endeavor  to  find  them.  The  let- 
ter concludes  by  saying  that  when  I  have  decided  to  be 
my  own  attorney,  and  agree  to  their  terms,  I  may  notify 
them  by  another  personal. 

This  letter  is  dated  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  and 

lO 


2l8  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

shows  that  the  abductors  did  not  remain  in  one  place 
for  any  length  of  time  after  they  knew  they  were  sus- 
pected of  having  committed  the  crime.  Whether  they 
went  to  the  British  Provinces  has  not  been  found  out; 
but  there  was  sufficient  time  to  have  gone  there  and 
returned,  there  being  an  interval  of  seventeen  days  be- 
tween the  dates  of  the  last  two  letters.  They  realized 
that  public  sentiment  had  been  so  outraged  by  the 
crime  that  it  would  be  unsafe  for  them  to  entrust  the 
exchange  to  an  attorney  or  any  one  else,  and  their  only 
security  lay  in  keeping  the  matter  under  their  own  con- 
trol. The  complaint  which  Charley  is  said  to  have 
suffered  from  had  not  been  thought  of  by  any  mem- 
ber of  the  family  since  he  was  stolen,  until  this  letter 
called  our  attention  to  it.  It  was  then  remembered  that 
on  one  or  two  occasions  he  had  complained  of  pain, 
which,  however,  yielded  to  mild  remedies,  without  our 
calling  in  a  physician  for  treatment.  Notwithstanding 
the  long  period  during  which  the  abductors  were  una- 
ble to  get  the  ransom  money,  and  their  own  knowledge 
that  they  were  suspected  of  having  kidnapped  the  child, 
yet  they  persistently  adhered  to  the  original  plan,  pre- 
arranged with  all  the  skill  and  cunning  which  could  be 
devised.  They  continue  to  lacerate  my  feelings  by  re- 
peating the  sufferings  my  little  son  was  compelled  to 
endure,  and  what  would  be  the  final  result  if  I  failed  to 
comply  with  their  demands. 

On  the  return  home  of  Mrs.  Ross's  brother,  Henry 
Lewis,  from  Europe  about  the  first  of  September, 
although  he  had  been  informed  of  the  stealing  of  Char- 
ley, and  of  many  of  the  facts  connected  with  it,  yet  he 
desired  to  know  what  theories  concerning  the  abduc- 


THE  SEARCH   CONTINUED.  2I9 

tors  were  held  by  those  who  were  famihar  with  the 
case;  also  what  had  been  done,  and  what  was  being  done 
at  that  time,  to  find  the  kidnappers  and  to  recover  the 
child.     This  information  he  desired  so  that  he  could 
decide  what  action  he  should  take,  and  what  he  should 
recommend  to  be  done  in  the  future.     I  referred  him 
to  Mr.  Bullitt  and  Mr.  McKean,  who  had  been  made 
acquainted  with  everything  that  I  knew  of  the  matter, 
and  who  had  studied  the  case,  and  were  aiding  me  in 
every  way  possible,  not  only  by  their  counsel,  but  by 
constant  personal  efforts.    He  was  also  referred  to  those 
who  were  interested  and  actively  working  in  it,  viz: 
Captain  Heins,  the  committee  of  citizens,  and  the  Pin- 
kerton  detective  agency.     After  he  had  learned  from* 
these  gentlemen  all  they  could  tell  him,  I  related  to 
him  everything  I  knew  about  the  matter,  and  requested 
him  to  see  Superintendent  Walling  in  New  York,  add- 
ing that  I  believed  he  had  the  only  clue  I  knew  of, 
which  appeared  to  me  to  be  correct,  and  while  it  was  a 
mere  suspicion,  yet  there  seemed  to  be  so  much  in  favor 
of  its  being  right,  that  before  he  did  anything  I  desired 
he   should  hear  upon  what  the  suspicion  was  based. 
On  his  return  from  New  York  he  expressed  the  opinion 
that  the  suspicions  which  were  entertained  there  that 
Mosher  and  Douglas  (alias  Henderson  and  Clark)  were 
the  abductors,  seemed  to  be  plausible,  and  he  had  urged 
Superintendent  Walling  to  work  the  case  up ;  but  at  the 
same  time  he  did  not  propose  to  rely  alone  on  that  clue, 
but  should  advocate  looking  into  everything  having  any 
bearing  on  the  case. 

Mr.  Lewis   now  entered  actively   upon  the  search. 
To  him  all  my  correspondence  was  sent.     He  met  the 


220  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

committee  of  citizens  daily,  and  conferred  with  the 
authorities  here  and  in  New  York,  whenever  it  was 
required.  He  relieved  me  during  the  month  of  Sep- 
tember, by  assuming  a  great  deal  of  the  labor  and 
responsibility,  which  had  fallen  on  me,  and  by  acting  for 
me  in  many  cases  which  came  to  his  knowledge.  I  was 
not  directly  in  communication  with  Supt.  Walling,  his 
official  correspondence  about  the  case  being  with  the 
authorities  in  the  city  ;  therefore,  I  was  not  acquainted 
with  the  detail  of  tlie  operations  of  the  New  York 
Police  Department.  But  having  so  much  at  stake,  I 
went  to  New  York  many  times  to  learn  what  progress 
was  being  made  in  the  search  for  the  suspected  party. 
Supt.  Walling  assured  me  that  he  was  doing  everything 
that  possibly  could  be  done  towards  getting  the  men; 
that  he  knew  they  were  moving  about  from  place  to 
place,  near  to  New  York  city ;  tliat  their  arrest  was 
simply  a  question  of  a  short  time,  and  they  could  not 
much  longer  elude  his  officers,  who  were  following 
their  tracks  very  closely.  On  my  last  interview  with 
him  in  September,  he  stated  that  he  could  get  Douglas 
at  any  time,  and  if  I  wished  him  to  be  arrested,  he 
thought  he  could  have  him  within  two  days.  I  replied 
that,  "In  view  of  the  threats  contained  in  the  letters  of 
the  abductors,  that  the  life  of  the  child  would  be  taken 
in  case  one  of  their  party  was  arrested,  I  feared  to 
run  the  risk  of  having  Douglas  taken  without  Mosher 
being  arrested  at  the  same  time."  To  which  he 
replied,  **  We  will  have  them  both ;  we  know  them 
and  will  pursue  them  until  we  find  them." 

While  this  trail  was  being  followed  up  in  New  York 
city,  Mayor  Bricst,  of  Trenton,  with  the  authorities  in 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  221 

that  city,  were  earnestly  engaged  in  working  up  a 
supposed  clue  in  that  city,  which  at  one  time  bade  fair 
to  result  favorably ;  but  which  after  much  labor  and 
time  had  been  spent,  proved  to  be  wrong.  Mayor 
Briest  writes  to  Capt.  Heins  as  follows : 

Trenton,  N.  J.,  September s,  1S74. 
Dear  Sir  : — I  certainly  feel  a  great  interest  in  the  Ross  case,  for  it 
has  been  impossible  for  me  to  relieve  my  mind  of  the  impression,  that 
the  man  we  have  under  surveillance  in  this  city  has  some  connection 
with  it.  Yet  I  may  be  mistaken,  as  others  have  been,  whose  impressions 
have  been  equally  strong,  &c.,  &c.  Truly  Yours, 

Briest,  Mayor. 

He  again  writes,  September  i8th  : 

Captain  William.  R.  Heins,  Detective,  Philadelphia. — 
Dear  Sir: — The  man  we  have  been  watching,  so  far  has  outwitted 
us.  He  left  his  residence  on  Monday  morning  about  3  o'clock,  with 
carpet-43ag,  duster,  and  umbrella,  apparently  to  take  one  of  the  early 
trains  ;  and  passed  where  he  must  have  known  a  policeman  would  see 
him.  He  gave  the  man  who  was  watching  him  the  slip,  and  again 
paraded  by  the  City  Hall  about  9  a.  m.,  with  his  duster  and  umbrella, 
but  without  his  carpet-bag,  etc.  Our  aim  has  been  to  arrest  him  when 
we  are  certain  he  is  going  to  New  York.  But  this  morning,  while  the 
scouts  were  being  sent  out,  word  was  sent  to  the  Marshal  that  he  had 
jumped  on  the  Pittsburg  Express,  which  passes  this  city  at  8  A,  M.,  for 
New  York.  It  does  not  generally  stop  at  this  city ;  but  this  morning 
happened  to  slow  up  to  let  off  a  railroad  official,  and  thus  made  an 
opening  for  him  to  get  away.  The  mention  of  that  hat  bemg  lost  on 
Bridge  street  in  this  city,  and  the  actions  of  our  man  to  ascertain 
whether  his  movements  were  watched,  etc.,  has  impressed  me  that  there 
is  a  connection  somewhere  between  the  two.  Of  course,  I  am  free  to 
acknowledge  that  I  may  be  mistaken ;  but  will  not  be  long  in  doubt,  if 
he  returns  to  make  this  city  his  headquarters,  etc.,  etc.    You  have  heard 

F 's  story,  and  are  able  to  judge  what  there  is  in  it.     He  seems  to  be 

very  anxious  and  earnest  about  the  matter ;  but  in  this  Ross  case,  when 
a  man  gets  an  idea  in  his  head  about  it,  he  seems  unnaturally  persistent 
about  it  until  it  touches  bottom. 

Yours  truly,  Briest,  Mayor. 


222  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

October  1st,  again  he  writes: 

Capt.  Wm.  R.  Heins. — Dear  Sir: — Our  man  is  away,  and  we  have 
no  trace  of  him  since  Saturday.  As  the  personals  look  as  though  matters 
were  coming  to  a  focus,  I  would  be  obliged  if  you  would  keep  me 
posted  as  to  the  reception  of  letters,  that  we  may  not  grope  too  much  in 
the  dark,  whether  our  suspicions  are  well  founded  or  not,  etc.,  etc. 

Yours  truly,  Briest,  Mayor, 

Again,  on  the  30th  of  October,  he  writes : 

Capt.  Wm.  R.  Heins. — Dear  Sir  : — Yours  of  the  3d  received,  with 
thanks  for  the  information.  Our  man  is  still  away,  and  my  suspicions 
of  his  connection  with  the  affair  grow  stronger  instead  of  lessening,  in 
the  light  of  the  few  facts  shed  upon  what  appears  to  be  the  climax  of 
this  **  unholy  crime."  If  the  money  is  to  be  paid  for  the  child,  and  you 
will  promptly  advise  us,  we  will  take  the  responsibility  of  taking  him,  if 
he  does  not  overreach  us.  We  think  he  is  in  it,  and  that  he  will  resort 
to  his  old  express  job,  which  he  seems  to  have  practiced  for  some  ulte- 
rior design.     However,  I  may  be  speculating  too  far. 

Very  truly  yours,  Briest,  Mayor, 

Again,  October  27th,  he  writes : 

CArr.  Wm.  R.  Heins. — Dear  Sir  : — Surface  indications  (as  they  say 
in  mining  parlance)  have  been  very  few  with  us  lately,  in  regard  to  the 
missing  child ;  and  from  not  hearing  from  you,  I  had  begun  to  think 
either  that  the  child  had  been  quietly  returned,  or  that  slow  progress  was 
being  made  in  the  negotiations  to  that  end. 

Briest,  Mayor. 
The  man  suspected  of  being  connected  with  this 
crime  was  known  also  in  New  York,  having  been  ar- 
rested in  that  city  for  stealing  bonds ;  after  pursuing 
him  for  a  long  time,  we  satisfactorily  ascertained 
that  he  was  not  implicated  in  the  abduction.  Thesis 
letters  and  extracts  are  given  to  show,  whenever  any 
degree  of  suspicion  was  entertained  against  a  per- 
son who  was  known  to  be  a  criminal,  how  closely  his 
movements  were  watched  by  the  authorities  in  other 
cities,  and  how  desirous  they  have  been  to  assist  in 


THE   SEARCH    CONTINUED.  223 

finding  the  miscreants  who  had  committed  this  "  un- 
holy crime." 

At  this  stage  of  the  history  I  was  disabled  for  any 
further  search  for  my  little  boy.  The  incessant  strain 
upon  mind  and  body  for  the  past  three  months — the 
alternation  of  hope  and  fear — the  anxious  pursuit — the 
weary  labor  by  day,  and  the  sleepless  nights — were 
surely  a  heavy  burden  to  carry,  without  the  heartless 
slanders  and  infamous  calumnies  which  were  coined  and 
circulated  about  Mrs.  Ross  and  myself.  All  these  coming 
on  like  a  flood  made  serious  inroads  upon  my  reason- 
ably strong  constitution,  now  weakened  by  intermitting 
fever  contracted  during  my  fearful  and  memorable  trip 
to  Albany,  through  the  malarious  swamps  of  New 
Jersey.  For  several  weeks  I  had  felt  my  strength  yield- 
ing to  the  excessive  tax  upon  my  system,  and  for  days 
was  kept  up  only  by  force  of  will,  strung  to  the  greatest 
tension  by  longing  for  our  lost  darling.  When  the 
break  came,  it  was  sudden  and  overwhelming;  both 
body  and  mind  succumbed  at  the  same  time,  and  for 
nearly  four  months  I  was  unable  to  give  personal  atten- 
tion to  this  or  any  other  subject.  During  that  time 
my  friends,  who  had  been  so  closely  identified  with  me 
in  the  great  affliction,  continued  to  give  their  attention 
to  the  search,  and  to  them  I  am  indebted  for  informa- 
tion of  what  was  done  during  these  long,  weary,  blank 
and  clouded  months  of  October,  November,  December 
and  January. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

LAST    LETTERS    FROM    THE    ABDUCTORS — THEIR    TRAGIC 
DEATH — VIGOROUS  SEARCH    FOR   CHARLEY. 

|N  the  29th  of  September  the  following  "Per- 
sonal" appeared  in  the  New  York  Herald: 

John,  your  terms  are  accepted.     Name  time  between  pay- 
ment and  delivery. 

To  which  an  answer  was  received  as  follows : 

[No.  20.] 
New  Brunswtc,  Scptcmlxir  30. — Mr.  Ros  :  yu  have  at  length  agreed 
to  our  terms,  how  much  better  would  it  have  been  for  yu  had  yu  com- 
plied at  first,  we  tolil  you  at  first  there  was  no  other  altemitive  left  yu 
but  to  part  with  your  mony  or  yu  child  for  one  or  the  other  yu  must, 
we  told  yu  before  it  shal  not  exceed  10  ours  from  the  time  we  receive  the 
mony  til  yu  receive  yu  child  and  yet  it  may  be  a  few  ours  longer,  we 
must  have  time  to  examine  the  money  to  see  that  yu  have  not  got  it 
secretly  marked  up.  we  tel  yu  for  your  own  interest  not  to  mark  the 
notes  in  any  way  whatever  for  if  you  break  the  terms  of  agreement  with 
us  we  shal  then  break  it  with  yu  and  yu  had  much  better  keep  your 
money  for  we  tel  yu  positively  we  would  not  keep  our  word,  we  would 
not  liberate  the  child,  but  on  the  other  hand  if  yu  come  to  us  in  good 
faith  with  the  intention  of  parting  with  yu  money  for  the  sake  of  getting 
yu  child  and  saving  him  from  death  then  we  pledge  ourselves  by  all  the 
powers  that  be  sacred  in  heaven  and  earth  yu  shall  have  yu  child  saf  and 
sound  as  soon  as  we  can  get  him  to  yu  with  safety  to  ourselves  we  think 
we  told  yu  once  how  we  would  return  him  tu  yu.  but  this  is  the  way 
we  propose  to  do.  we  will  take  him  to  some  ministers  house  at  night 
put  a  label  on  him  stating  this  is  Charley  Ros  take  him  immediately  to 
304  Market  st  phil  or  Washington  lane  germantown  yu  will  find  a  suffi- 
cient sum  in  his  pocket  to  pay  yu  for  yu  trouble  no  reward  will  be  paid, 
we  have  sent  word  to  his  parents  stating  where  he  is.     Mr.  Ros  we  do 

(224) 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  22$ 

not  intend  the  party  where  we  leave  him  shall  see  us  at  all  they  will  be 
perfect  innocent  so  you  should  not  give  them  any  trouble,  we  will  send 
you  word  immediately  stating  where  he  is  left,  but  the  probability  is  he 
will  be  brought  home  long  before  yu  the  get  letter  but  this  will  make  it 
perfectly  safe  and  sure  for  yu  to  get  him.  Mr.  Ros  it  is  true  yu  have 
got  tu  rely  entirely  on  our  honor  for  the  fulfilment  of  this  part  of  the 
contract  but  you  can  rely  with  implicit  confidence,  bad  as  we  are  and 
capable  of  the  blackest  deeds  yet  we  have  some  honer  left,  your  large 
rewards  have  in  a  measure  proved  this  there  are  4  of  us  to  divide  the 
^20,000  among  and  either  one  of  the  4  could  went  and  got  the  whole 
amount  to  himself  if  he  had  been  without  principal,  how  easy  could  any 
one  of  the  4  went  on  the  sly  and  had  us  all  coped  and  revealed  where 
the  child  was  secreted  but  yu  see  we  have  not  done  it.  we  have  no  fear 
of  one  another  though  it  were  a  million  dollars,  we  have  told  yu  for 
your  own  interest  not  tu  mark  the  money  which  yu  intend  tu  ransom 
your  child  with,  keep  faith  with  us  and  we  will  keep  faith  with  yu  and 
yu  shal  have  yu  child  safe  and  sound  in  lo  or  12  ours,  provide  yourself 
with  the  amount  in  United  States  notes  from  I  tu  10  in  denomination, 
not  national  bank  notes  when  yu  are  all  prepared  with  this  and  are  ready 
to  meet  us  drop  a  word  in  the  herald  New  York  yu  can  take  as  many  of 
yu  friends  as  yu  choose  but  do  it  quietly  if  yu  want  tu  get  yu  child.  Mr 
Ros  first  get  yu  child  then  let  the  detectives  assist  yu.  yu  see  they  have 
not  the  power  to  do  anything,  time  has  proved  this  and  if  yu  rely  upon 
them  so  it  will  ever  prove.  Mr  Ros  put  yu  child  when  yu  get  him  on 
exhibition  and  yu  wil  relize  all  your  money  back  in  6  months  for  there  is 
not  a  mother  in  phila  that  will  not  pay  a  dollar  to  see  him. 

Throughout  this  letter  it  is  apparent  that  the  kidnap- 
pers feared  either  that  it  was  not  my  purpose  to  give 
them  the  money,  or  that  attempts  would  be  made  to 
deceive  them  in  some  way;  hence  they  so  frequently 
caution  me  against  acting  in  bad  faith  towards  them, 
and  insist  on  receiving  United  States  notes  oi  small  dQ- 
numinations.  In  all  the  previous  letters  they  stated  it 
would  be  to  their  interest  to  return  Charley  after  find- 
ing the  money  correct.  In  this  one  matter  they  claim 
credit  for  some  principle,  and,  as  evidence  of  it,  say  that 
there  are  four  of  them  among  whom  the  ^20,000  is  to 
10* 


226  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

be  divided,  and  that  cither  of  the  four,  by  informing  on 
the  rest,  could  easily  have  obtained  the  whole  reward 
offered  by  the  Mayor ;  but  they  boast  that  they  have 
kept  faith  with  each  other,  and  would  have  done  so  if 
fifty  times  as  much  had  been  offered.  It  was  supposed 
by  many  persons  that  by  offering  a  large  reward  one 
of  the  villains  in  the  plot  would  be  induced  to  inform 
on  the  rest;  but  they  were  so  closely  bound  to  each 
other  that  no  such  results  followed.  The  time  for  the 
delivery  of  the  child  after  receiving  the  money  is  again 
extended;  at  first  it  was  fixed  at  five  hours,  then  ex- 
tended to  ten,  and  now  from  ten  to  twelve  hours,  claim- 
ing an  additional  allowance  to  enable  them  to  find  the 
money  correct.  They  state  more  particularly  the  way 
in  which  they  propose  to  return  Charley,  and  suggest 
that  I  make  a  public  exhibition  of  him  to  reimburse 
myself 

As  stated  in  the  last  chapter,  I  was  prevented  from 
giving  further  attention  to  the  search,  but  everything 
requiring  examination  here  was  looked  into  by  the 
authorities  and  my  friends,  as  well  as  the  clue  which 
the  New  York  police  had  worked  upon  for  so  long  a 
time.  The  detail  of  their  operations  I  am  not  able  to 
give.  Not  only  were  Westervelt's  services  engaged  in 
the  case,  but  also  those  of  the  person  who  gave  the  first 
information  of  his  suspicions  that  Mosher  and  Douglas 
were  the  kidnappers.  He  with  a  number  of  police  offi- 
cers was  continually  employed  in  endeavoring  to  find 
the  men. 

Westervelt  never  would  admit  that  he  had  seen  the 
men,  but  professed  always  that  he  was  looking  for  them, 
until  Superintendent  Walling  learned  that  he  had  seen 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  22/ 

them,  and  told  him  that  he  knew  he  had  seen  Mosher 
and  Douglas.  He  then  admitted  that  he  had  met  them 
at  two  different  times,  but  claimed  he  could  not  have 
informed  the  Superintendent  in  time  to  be  of  service  to 
him. 

On  the  7th  of  October  the  following  personal  was 
published  in  the  New  York  Herald: 

John,  the  money  is  ready ;  state  clearly  and  fully  mode  of  payment 
and  manner  of  delivery. 

On  the  1 6th  of  October  an  answer  as  follows  was 
received,  which  was  mailed  in  Newburg,  New  York,  on 
the  15th,  although  written  on  nth  of  October,  and 
having  a  post-script  dated  the  15th  : 

[No.  21.  Mailed  at  Newburg,  N.  Y.,  October  15,  1874.  Received 
October  16,  1874.] 
October  i  i  . — Mr.  Ros  :  You  say  the  money  is  ready  how  is  it  then 
we  can't  come  to  a  speedy  compromise  if  yu  was  anxious  to  get  yu  child 
and  wiling  to  pay  yu  money  then  there  is  no  trouble  about  it*  we  are 
anxious  to  give  him  up  but  only  on  the  conditions  we  have  before  told 
yu  you  ask  again  how  we  are  to  deliver  him  to  yu  we  told  yu  in  our  last 
letter  plainly  how  we  would  return  him  to  yu  is  not  that  way  satisfac- 
tory yu  don't  want  us  surely  to  turn  him  loose  on  the  road  at  the  ded 
our  of  night  we  wil  never  bring  him  to  you  personaly  nor  wil  we  ever 
take  him  to  any  one  you  appoint  but  we  will  take  him  to  a  strange 
family  where  it  is  least  expected  and  where  you  will  be  sure  to  get  him 
if  the  way  of  delivering  him  is  not  satisfactory  to  yu  then  we  cannot 
come  to  terms  for  we  are  determined  in  delivering  him  to  yu  that  no 
person  shal  see  our  face  when  we  do  go  with  him  we  shal  be  com- 
pletely disguised  yu  ask  to  state  plainly  how  yu  are  to  pay  the  money 
that  will  be  told  yu  at  the  proper  time  so  far  as  the  money  is  concerned 
that  is  imaterial  to  yu  what  disposal  is  made  of  it  so  long  as  yu  comply 
with  our  demands  which  you  already  know  all  you  have  to  do  now  in 
order  to  have  yu  child  restorded  to  yu  is  to  make  up  yu  mind  that  yu 
have  got  to  part  with  so  many  dollars  and  it  maters  not  to  yu  what 
becomes  of  the  money  so  long  as  it  satisfies  our  demand  we  return  yu  the 
child,  yu  may  have  a  doubt  that  yu  may  not  then  get  yu  child,  we 
cannot  give  yu  the  child  before  we  get  the  money  for  then  we  part  with 


228  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

every  compulsion  to  make  yu  pay  it.  we  cannot  hand  you  the  child  as 
yu  hand  us  the  money  for  all  the  power  and  all  the  law  is  on  your  side, 
the  thing  is  all  embodied  in  a  nutshell,  the  child  is  of  no  entrensic 
value  to  us  whatever,  any  further  than  to  compel  yu  to  ransom  him  if  yu 
pay  the  ransom  and  we  do  not  give  him  up  to  yu  would  any  one  else 
give  a  dollar  for  their  child  when  they  would  have  no  assurance  what- 
ever of  getting  him.  yu  certainly  would  not  be  fool  enough  to  pay  the 
ransom  the  second  time  when  we  had  not  kept  faith  with  yu  the  first 
time  but  yu  ask  he  might  be  dead  and  then  we  could  not  give  him  up— 
yes  he  might  have  been  dead  a  dozzen  times  through  your  neglect  to 
redeem  him  but  as  it  hapens  he  has  lived  in  spite  of  his  close  confine- 
ment again  yu  say  we  might  hurried  his  death  as  we  have  threatened  it 
so  many  times.  That  is  true — we  might  but  it  has  not  come  to  that 
crisis  yet  so  long  as  the  inducement  is  held  out  of  geting  the  ransom  he 
is  in  a  measure  safe  but  there  wil  be  a  time  when  the  inducement  wil 
cxaust  itself  when  this  death  takes  place  it  wil  be  our  policy  and  interest 
to  make  it  known  to  yu  at  once  that  others  may  be  wiser  than  yu — if  yu 
should  pay  the  ransom  and  then  not  get  yu  child  would  any  one  else 
have  faith  enough  in  us  to  p:;y  a  ransom  when  Ros  did  not  get  his  child 
after  paying  for  him — Mr.  Ros  you  can  rest  assured  with  all  confidence 
when  yu  pay  yu  mony  yu  wil  get  yu  child  but  it  wil  be  imposible  unless 
you  do.  yu  have  ben  living  in  hope  of  geting  him  without  the  ransom 
but  the  detectives  in  the  case  are  powerless,  yu  get  a  clue  every  few 
days  or  rather  a  false  clue,  only  a  few  days  ago  yu  child  was  seen  in 
New  Haven,  i  tel  you  positively  and  tu  save  you  trouble  and  anxiety 
that  yu  child  has  not  been  seen  by  any  human  being  since  the  third  day 
of  July  other  than  the  party  who  have  been  in  charge  we  could  not  take 
him  five  miles  without  being  arrested ;  when  we  return  him  to  yu  it 
will  be  in  the  night  time  if  at  all  when  yu  hear  yu  child  is  seen  here  or 
there  yu  can  have  no  faith  in  it.  for  he  wil  not  be  seen  by  any  one 
while  we  have  him  that  yu  can  rest  assured  of.  yu  say  yu  money  is 
ready,  are  you  ready  to  take  a  short  journey  and  have  this  thing  set- 
tled. Mr.  Ros  this  continual  correspondence  looks  to  us  as  if  it  was 
but  a  ruse  to  get  a  clue  to  oiur  whereabouts.  We  tel  yu  positively  should 
they  succeed  in  capturing  one  of  us  it  would  certainly  prove  death  to  yu 
child.  Do  3ru  believe  it  or  not — whether  or  not  it  wil  not  alter  our 
decree.  If  yu  banish  all  hope  of  ever  geting  yu  child  til  yu  ransom 
him  and  drop  the  detectives  yu  wil  then  take  a  rational  view  of  the 
thing  and  see  it  in  its  true  light.  We  told  yu  we  were  going  to  urope  last 
month;  part  of  us  did  go,  but  we  expect  them  back  in  few  days  and  then 


LAST  LETTERS  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS.     229 

we  can  settle  the  business  if  yu  are  ready.     We  wil  see  the  personals  in 
the  New  York  herald. 

October  15 — we  had  almost  concluded  after  writing  this  not  to  send 
it  for  you  ask  questions  that  answered  planly — but  we  wil  see  what  you 
want  now — if  yu  are  ready  to  pay  we  are  ready  to  return  the  child  to 
your  satisfaction. 

This  letter  is  little  else  than  a  repetition  of  several 
already  given.  They,  however,  say  the  child  is  still 
living  notwithstanding  his  close  confinement,  and  de- 
clare his  safety  from  a  violent  death  so  long  as  there  is 
a  prospect  of  getting  the  money.  They  also  state  that 
he  has,  since  the  3d  of  July,  been  seen  only  by  those 
having  charge  of  him,  and  that  when  he  is  returned  it 
will  be  in  the  night,  by  persons  disguised,  so  that  recog- 
nition will  be  impossible.  They  also  say  that  should  one 
of  their  party  be  captured  the  life  of  the  child  would 
certainly  be  taken.  They  suspect  this  correspondence 
is  kept  up  on  our  part  in  order  to  get  a  clue  to  their 
whereabouts.  This  was  our  real  object,  but  they  kept 
moving  about  from  place  to  place  so  frequently  that  it 
was  not  possible  to  keep  pace  with  them. 

The  following  letter  was  received  from  Superinten- 
dent Walling  about  this  time,  reporting  his  progress  in 
the  Mosher  and  Douglas  investigation: 

New  York,  October  22,  1874. 

Wm.  R.  Heins,  Esq.,  Captain  Detective  Police,  Philadelphia. 
— Dear  Sir: — I  saw  my  informant  last  night;  he  says  that  we  are  surely 
on  the  right  track,  but  they  have  hopes  of  getting  the  child  redeemed, 
and  he  has  not  been  able  to  find  where  it  is.  I  think  any  arrangements 
made  with  the  kidnappers  for  the  restoration  of  the  child  would  be  a 
public  calamity ;  no  child  would  be  safe  hereafter  if  it  had  parents  or 
friends  who  could  raise  money.  I  am  confident  that  I  shall  get  the 
guilty  parties  and  the  child  at  some  time  not  far  distant,  provided  no 
compromise  is  made  with  them. 

Very  respectfully  yours,  etc. 

Geo.  W.  Walling,  Superintendent, 


230  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

And  on  the  28th  of  October  he  writes  thus: 

New  York,  October  2S,  1874, 
W.  R.  Heins,  Captain  Detective  Police,  Philadelphia.— 5/>.* 
—Yours  of  yesterday  received.  On  Monday  night  Clark  alias  Douglas 
went  to  where  they  used  to  meet,  but  found  the  lager  beer  saloon  closed. 
He  inquired  for  Westervelt.  I  heard  it  yesterday  morning,  and  about 
an  hour  afterwards  Westervelt  came  and  told  me  Clark  had  been  inquir- 
ing for  him.  Of  course  I  did  not  tell  him  I  knew  it;  so  I  think  Wes- 
tervelt has  kept  faith  with  me. 

I  am  satisfied  that  I  could  get  Clark  alias  Douglas,  as  I  have  heard 
from  him  several  times,  but  he  was  always  alone.  I  do  not  want  to  get 
him  without  Mosher.     I  am  in  hopes  of  locating  the  child  soon,  as  I 

now  think  Westervelt  was  mistaken  in  his  suspicions  of .     There 

is  another  person  we  suspect  as  having  custody  of  the  child,  as  he  has 
been  missing  since  the  disappearance,  and  he  was  intimate  with  them. 
Yours,  etc.  Geo.  W.  Walling,  SuperinUnderU, 

He  writes  again  on  November  4th,  1874: 

Captain  Heins. — Dear  Sir: — Since  you  were  here  I  have  seen  the 
man  of  whom  I  spoke  to  you  about  getting  information  of  Mosher.  He 
says  some  one  has  been  to  every  place  where  Mosher  used  to  go,  and 
inquired  for  him,  and  that  they  all  know  he  is  wanted  and  what  for, 
and  that  he  is  secreted.  I  also  saw  Westervelt,  and  accused  him  of 
having  played  me  false.  He  swears  he  has  not,  and  says  that  he  has  seen 
Douglas  and  could  get  him  for  me,  but  does  not  know  where  Mosher 
is.  I  am  certain  that  they  are  the  parties,  and  am  equally  certain  that 
they  will  not  harm  the  child. 

I  wish  the  boy's  friends  could  make  up  their  minds  to  defy  the  kid- 
nappers ;  had  they  done  so  a  month  ago,  I  believe  the  child  would  now 
be  at  home  with  its  mother.  Nothing  but  the  hope  of  gain  and  being 
able  to  make  a  bargain  for  their  security,  I  am  confident,  causes  them  to 
keep  possession  of  the  child. 
Yours  truly, 

Geo.  W.  Walling,  Superi$itendent, 

Again,  on  November  12th,  he  says : 

The  parties  are  hard  up  and  have  come  to  the  end  of  their  tether. 
We  are  pushing  them  so  hard  that  they  dare  not  get  out  to  do  anything. 
I  don't  think  Douglas  will  squeal  unless  we  can  get  hold  of  him. 

Yours,  etc.,  Geo.  W.  Walling,  Superintendent. 


LAST    LETTERS   FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  23 1 

Before  the  Superintendent  succeeded  in  getting  Wes- 
tervelt's  consent  to  help  him  to  find  Mosher  and  Doug- 
las, he  promised  him  that  if  he  was  successful  he  should 
have  the  full  amount  of  the  twenty  thousand  dollars 
reward  offered  for  the  abductors  and  the  child.  For 
some  time  Westervelt  professed  to  be  working  for  that 
object;  but  subsequently  told  Mr.  Walling  that  he 
would  not  give  information  of  his  brother-in-law,  but 
would  "  give  Douglas  away."  The  Superintendent  hesi- 
tated to  assume  the  responsibility  of  taking  Douglas 
alone,  knowing  that  Mosher  was  the  principal  in  the 
plot.  He  feared  that  the  threats  made  against  the  life 
of  the  child  in  the  event  of  one  arrest  would  be  put  into 
execution.  He  finally,  however,  directed  Westervelt  to 
put  him  in  the  way  of  getting  Douglas.  This  Wester- 
velt never  did,  although  several  opportunities  were 
afforded,  which  became  known  at  a  subsequent  time. 
In  October  Mr.  Walling  learning  that  Mosher  and  Doug- 
lass were  on  a  boat  in  some  of  the  waters  near  New  York, 
wrote  to  Capt.  Reins.  Mr.  McKean  suggested  that  a 
steam-tug  be  chartered  and  sent  in  search  of  them. 
The  necessary  funds  were  remitted,  and  Detective  Wood 
of  this  city,  with  two  officers  from  New  York,  and  an 
other  person  well  acquainted  with  both  the  men  to  be 
sought  and  localities  to  be  visited,  were  sent  on  a  steam 
launch  to  carry  out  Superintendent  Walling's  plan. 
They  went  up  the  Hudson  River  as  far  as  Newburg, 
examining  all  the  creeks  emptying  into  the  river  on 
both  sides;  returning  they  entered  the  East  River  and 
searched  all  the  inlets  and  coves  on  both  sides  of  Long 
Island  Sound,  and  after  being  absent  about  eleven  days 
returned  without  getting  any  trace  of  the  fugitives. 


232  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Officers  were  detailed  to  watch  Astoria  ferry,  reported 
by  Westervelt  as  a  place  where  the  at^ductors  might  be 
found.  He  also  informed  the  Superintendent  of  a  res- 
taurant where  they  had  taken  meals  when  in  New  York. 
After  vainly  watching  these  places  for  weeks  the  offi- 
cers were  withdrawn.  On  the  28th  of  October  the 
following  personal  appeared  in  the  New  York  Herald: 

John,  too  sick  to  take  journey.     Will  relative  answer  ? 

And  on  the  31st  the  following  reply  was  received, 
dated  Philadelphia: 

[No.  22.] 

Phila  Oct  31  Mr  Ros  we  told  you  at  the  beginning  of  this  bisnes 
we  would  deal  with  none  but  you  the  reason  of  this  must  be  apparent  to 
yu  the  fate  of  your  child  would  depend  upon  your  actions  in  dealing 
with  us  we  know  you  would  not  intentionally  sacrifice  your  child  in 
breaking  faith  with  us  we  told  you  in  dealing  with  us  you  must  act  in 
good  faith  and  any  breach  of  faith  on  your  part  would  be  meeted  out  in 
certain  death  Mr  Ros  if  you  have  any  relation  or  friend  that  you  can 
delegate  to  this  important  bisines  then  we  are  ready  to  deal  with  him 
we  care  not  who  he  may  be  if  it  be  mr  hines  or  the  states  attorney — we 
are  willing  to  negociate  with  him  but  mr  Ros  we  want  you  not  to  deceive 
yourself  in  this  bisines  for  we  tell  you  plainly  his  acts  will  involve  the 
life  or  death  of  your  child  we  shall  regard  him  as  your  substitute  in 
every  particular  and  hold  the  life  of  your  child  responsible  for  his  ac- 
tions. Mr  Ros  from  your  answers  we  understood  you  agree  to  the  terms 
we  previously  dictated,  send  your  substitute  to  New  York  tuesday  3rd 
november  with  the  means  to  settle  this  bisines.  remember  the  money 
must  be  in  every  particular  as  we  directed  for  you  can  accomplish  nothing 
with  us  in  using  any  stratagem  for  we  will  not  release  the  child  under 
any  other  circumstances  then  your  carrying  out  the  terms  in  good  faith 
with  us  it  is  unnecessary  for  us  to  pledge  ourselves  in  any  way  in  regard 
to  the  child  being  immediately  returned  to  you.  all  we  can  do  or  say  is 
— it  shall  be  our  first  move  to  restore  the  child  after  we  see  the  money  is 
all  right,  we  shall  spare  no  trouble  or  expense  in  returning  the  child  to 
you  safely,  though  it  cost  us  five  thousand  we  would  not  hesitate  to  use 
it  in  order  to  return  the  child,  but  it  will  not  cost  us  ten  dollars  and  you 
shal  have  him  as  safe  and  sound  as  he  was  on  the  first  day  of  July  last 


l\x<aA^^x. /^,-vJhaJ    I^tIW}  /jr^^w^    Vcn-  jiA>>-*tllX  jy^  \X1aK^ 
Reduced  Fac- Simile  of  Letter  Number  Twenty-two. 


Reduced  Fac- Simile  of  Letter  Number  Twenty-two. 


LAST    LETTERS    FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  23/ 

when  he  was  playing  in  front  of  your  door  with  Walter,  your  substitute 
on  arriving  in  new  York  must  put  a  personal  in  herald,     say.  John  i  am 

stoping  at hotel  with  his  name  in  full.    Mr  Ros  you  say  the  money 

is  ready  and  your  substitute,  and  we  are  ready,  then  November  the 
3d  wil  prove  or  disprove  the  sincerity  of  your  action.  Mr  Ros  you  see 
by  this  we  have  come  among  you  once  more. 

The  abductors,  holding  the  Hfe  of  the  child  as  the  for- 
feit should  there  be  an  attempt  at  any  deception  on  my 
part,  were  bold  enough  to  say  that  any  one,  even  Cap- 
tain Heins  or  the  district  attorney,  may  act  as  my  sub- 
stitute in  paying  the  money.  They  appoint  November 
3d  as  the  day  on  which  my  substitute  should  be  in  New 
York.  Previous  to  his  going,  they  require  to  be  noti- 
fied at  what  hotel  he  would  be,  and  also  that  his  full 
name  be  placed  to  the  advertisement.  They  say  after 
the  money  is  found  to  be  right  they  will  return  the 
child  regardless  of  cost,  as  safe  and  sound  as  he.  was 
on  the  day  he  was  taken  away,  and  boastingly  call  at- 
tention to  the  fact  of  their  being  in  Philadelphia.  On 
the  3d  of  November  another  personal  was  inserted  ir 
the  New  York  Herald^  as  follows : 

John,  change  address  of  personals.  Relative  will  not  sign  his  nama 
in  full. 

And  on  the  same  day  the  following  answer  was  sent 
from  New  Brunswick,  New  Jersey: 

[No.  22^.] 
New  Brunswick,  November  3 — Mr.  Ros.  it  looks  very  strange  to  us 
that  you  should  quible  about  the  name  to  address  us.  is  your  object  to 
keep  the  detectives  informed  of  our  whereabouts  by  having  us  writing 
you  so  often,  it  looks  so  but  time  will  prove  all  things,  our  advice  is  to 
you  and  it  is  better  than  all  the  detectives  combined  can  give  you  is  to  act 
squarely  in  this  bisnes  if  you  have  any  regard  for  your  child,  we  think 
we  have  cautioned  you  enough  on  this  point,  we  are  satisfied  the  detec- 
tives are  working  the  thing  up  to  their  interest  we  know  all  about  their 


238  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

doings  and  how  they  are  bleeding  you  and  Mr  louis  out  of  your  money 
you  will  open  your  eyes  to  their  games,  by  the  by  we  could  tell  you  much 
about  them  but  our  place  is  to  keep  mum  and  yours  to  investigate  before 
you  give  more  money  out.  it  makes  us  jealous  to  see  you  pay  out  your 
mony  foolishly  when  they  can  give  you  nothing  in  return  but  a  parcel  of 
fabricated  lies,  we  confes  we  are  bleeding  you  to— but  we  have  an 
equivalent  to  give  you  in  return,  if  you  child  b  any  equivalent,  you  will 
find  sooner  or  later  that  there  is  no  other  earthly  party  in  this  world  to 
deal  with  than  ourselves  if  you  want  to  recover  your  child.  Mr.  Ros 
why  could  not  your  relative  give  any  name  so  that  we  could  have  a  name 
to  address  him  ?  it  matters  not  what  the  name  is  we  shall  regard  him 
as  yourself  in  every  sense  of  the  word  so  look  to  whom  you  appoint  to 
transact  this  business  for  you.  we  tell  you  positivey  and  absoluty  that 
on  his  acts  right  or  rong  square  or  crooked  in  dealing  with  us  the  life  or 
death  of  yu  child  shall  hang  now.  Mr.  Ros  you  may  appoint  any  one 
you  please  to  transact  the  bisines  with  us  but  we  want  you  to  bear  in  mind 
that  his  acts  are  your  acts  and  it  shall  be  consumated  just  as  you  will  it — 
and  if  you  want  your  child  safe  and  sound  this  is  the  final  day  of  salvation, 
we  have  been  at  least  under  I15  a  day  expense  since  we  had  him  but  that 
is  our  own  affair,  you  may  have  been  under  five  times  that  expense  for 
what  we  know.  Mr  Ross  you  must  not  be  deceived  from  this  because  we 
are  under  expenses  from  keeping  him  that  we  will  turn  him  loose  should 
you  not  meet  our  demands,  we  tell  you  positively  we  could  not  do  it 
we  would  not  do  it  should  it  benefit  us  the  whole  amount  of  |20,ooo 
than  for  the  redemption  of  your  child,  you  may  think  from  this  should 
you  pay  the  demands,  we  might  not  then  return  your  child.  Mr  Ros 
when  you  have  paid  our  demands  in  good  faith  you  have  answered  all 
we  can  ask  of  you  and  we  tell  you  as  we  have  told  you  before  that  your 
child  is  not  worth  one  cent  to  us  after  that  ony  to  return  him  to  you  and 
we  would  not  fail  in  any  event  to  return  him  to  you  for  $10,000. 
strange  as  this  may  appear  to  you  yet  it  is  our  interest  to  do  so.  should 
you  not  come  to  our  terms  it  is  our  interest  that  you  never  get  him  and 
you  may  rely  on  it  you  never  will  alive,  you  may  think  this  is  to  cruel 
for  any  sivelized  person  to  perpetrate  but  we  tell  you  positively  it  is  the 
lot  of  one  of  us  to  perform  it  if  it  comes  to  this  crises,  you  will  not  be 
able  by  any  quibbling  to  stay  the  hand  of  fate  much  longer  from  him. 
we  have  kept  him  over  one  hundred  days  longer  than  we  expected, 
now  it  is  for  you  alone  to  say  whether  he  shal  live  or  die.  this  is  the 
last  letter  we  shall  we  ever  send  you  till  we  send  you  the  final  one  reveal- 
ins>i:  to  YOU  whether  he  is  either  alive  or  dead  just  as  you  will  it  to  be. 


LAST    LETTERS    FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  239 

you  need  not  ask  more  questions  for  they  will  not  be  noticed  no  answer 
will  be  returned,  if  you  appoint  any  one  to  conduct  this  business  for  you 
let  him  come  to  New  York  make  it  known  through  personal  with  any 
address  he  choses.  this  address  will  do  (John  Johnathan  is  stopping  at 
so  and  so.  Johnathan  or  who  he  may  be  must  not  leave  the  hotel  till  he 
hears  from  us.  if  you  mean  square  bisiness  have  your  personal  in 
Friday's  Herald  (N.  Y.)  and  be  in  New  York  on  Saturday  morning. 
Mr.  Ros  bear  in  mind  this  is  the  last  and  fifial  letter  you  ever  receive 
from  us  unless  you  come  to  New  York  to  close  this  bismess. 

The  abductors  again  intimate  that  we  are  keeping 
up  this  correspondence  for  the  purpose  of  tracing  them, 
and  warn  us  that  the  money  being  used  in  looking  for 
them  is  spent  foohshly.  They  profess  to  know  what 
the  detectives  are  doing,  and  state  that  they  cannot  aid 
me;  -they  themselves,  and  they  alone,  can  give  me  an 
equivalent  for  the  money  by  returning  the  child.  Who- 
ever may  act  as  my  agent  in  transacting  this  business 
will  be  regarded  as  myself,  and  on  his  action  the  life  of 
the  child  will  depend.  They  say  they  have  been  at  an 
expense  of  fifteen  dollars  per  day  since  Charley  was 
taken,  and  have  kept  him  one  hundred  days  longer 
than  they  expected;  that  after  the  money  is  received  the 
child  will  not  be  worth  one  cent  to  them,  having  an- 
swered all  the  ends  for  which  he  was  taken;  but  add 
that  should  the  money  not  be  paid,  I  will  never  get  him 
alive,  but  will  be  informed  of  his  death.  They  declare 
that  this  is  the  last  letter  they  will  send,  unless  they 
write  to  reveal  the  fact  of  his  death;  that  it  has  fallen  to 
the  lot  of  one  of  them  to  kill  him  if  he  is  not  redeemed; 
and  give  the  address  for  the  next  personal  to  be  put  in 
the  Herald  of  November  6th.  This  appeared  in  the 
paper  on  that  date,  and  is  as  follows : 

John,  you  must  cliange  the  name  of  John  for  personals.  It  has  be- 
come too  well  known. 


240  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

On  the  7th  of  November  the  following  reply  was 
received,  dated  Philadelphia: 

[No.  23.] 

Phila.,  Nov.  6. — Mr.  Ros:  we  told  you  in  the  last  positively  we  rould 
not  write  you  any  more,  this  dozing  about  puts  us  to  no  small  amount 
of  trouble  we  had  left  phila  for  New  York  thinking  you  were  ready 
to  close  up  the  business,  we  told  you  p>osiiively  procrastination  is  dan- 
gerous, had  we  accomplished  what  we  have  been  fishing  for  the  last 
three  months  your  child  would  now  have  been  dead  but  we  have  not  yet 
caught  the  fish  we  wanted,  yours  is  but  a  small  item  compared  with 
something  else.  Walter  said  you  owned  the  two  new  houses  right  oppo- 
site you  or  we  should  never  troubled  you.  Mr.  Ros  you  have  asked  to 
keep  this  negotiation  a  secret  between  ourselves  it  is  a  wise  policy  in 
your  doings  not  that  we  fear  being  traped  in  our  own  game.  This  is 
positively  the  last  from  us.  if  you  are  sincere  you  would  be  anxious  to 
settle  tliis  business  if  you  regard  the  life  of  your  child,  we  mean  to  fulfil 
every  promise  we  made  you  in  good  faith,  the  result  depends  entirely 
with  yourself  whom  you  appoint  to  transact  this  business  for  yu  we  want 
at  least  two  days  notice  before  you  come  to  New  York  for  we  may  be 
500  miles  off  and  we  ask  for  time  to  get  there  yu  can  say  tuesday  nov  10. 
Saul  of  Tarsus,  (choose  your  own  name  say  i  will  be  stoping  so  and  so 
all  day.  do  not  leave  the  hotel  wherever  you  may  be  stoping  for  one 
minute  during  the  day),  this  thing  must  come  and  shall  come  to  a  close 
in  a  few  days. 

In  this,  the  last  letter  received  from  the  abductors, 
they  hint  that  they  have  been  trying  for  three  months 
to  steal  another  child,  and  had  they  succeeded  my  child 
would  have  been  killed,  and  a  ransom  demanded  for 
their  new  victim,  compared  with  which  the  twenty 
thousand  required  from  me  would  be  an  insignificant 
sum.  They  also  state  that  Walter  misled  them  regard- 
ing my  circumstances  by  telling  them  I  owned  two  new 
houses  which  had  been  built  opposite  to  my  residence. 
Tuesday,  November  loth,  is  fixed  as  the  day  on  which 
my  representative  is  asked  to  be  in  New  York  to  pay 
over  the  money,  and  the  address  of  the  personal  is 
changed  to  "  Saul  of  Tarsus." 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  24I 

More  than  four  months  had  now  passed  since  Char- 
ley had  been  stolen.  The  poHce  and  detective  agen- 
cies, with  all  their  unremitted  and  almost  superhuman 
efforts,  had  failed  to  find  the  thieves,  or  get  a  clue  to 
the  place  where  they  had  hidden  their  victim.  Twenty- 
three  letters  written  and  mailed  in  different  places  had 
been  received  from  the  abductors,  bidding  defiance  to 
the  best  detective  skill.  Contrary  to  our  expectation 
and  hope,  the  abductors  had  not  made  a  single  error,  or 
the  smallest  slip,  by  which  they  could  be  traced;  but 
with  a  shrewdness  and  cunning  far  above  ordinary  crim- 
inals, they  had  successfully  evaded  pursuit,  and  baffled 
every  effort  at  discovery. 

Four  months  were  these  of  acute  suffering  to  my 
family  and  friends ;  and  now  I  was  so  ill  that  for  a  time 
my  life  was  despaired  of,  and  it  was  thought  by  my 
medical  attendants  that  nothing  but  the  speedy  return 
of  Charley  could  restore  my  broken  mind  and  body — 
that  the  load  of  trouble  which  was  crushing  me  must 
be  removed  in  order  to  a  mental  and  physical  restora- 
tion. The  want  of  success  in  the  past  led  to  little  hope 
of  recovery  of  Charley  by  the  same  appliances  in  the 
immediate  present.  Besides,  Mrs.  Ross  was  weighed 
down  with  the  accumulation  of  trouble;  and  thus,  in  the 
double  hope  of  saving  my  life  and  recovering  Charley, 
she  consented  to  have  the  child  restored  by  paying  the 
ransom.  This  her  brothers  determined  to  do  in  the 
way  pointed  out  by  the  abductors,  paying  them  the 
money  and  taking  the  risk  of  getting  the  child  after- 
wards. As  the  authorities  both  here  and  in  New  York 
knew  of  the  change  of  address  of  the  personals  from 
"John"  to  "Saul  of  Tarsus,"  they  were  informed  that  it 


242  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

was  the  purpose  of  Mrs.  Ross's  brothers  to  redeem  the 
child  by  paying  the  ransom  which  the  abductors  de- 
manded, and  on  the  1 3th  of  November,  Superintendent 
Walling  wrote  as  follows  to  Captain  Heins : 

Dear  Sir. — Please  see  Mr.  Lewis  and  say  to  him  that  I  think  it  dan- 
gerous for  parties  to  meet  relative  to  any  negotiations  for  the  child,  with 
a  large  amouut  of  money,  unless  they  have  some  officers  within  call,  as 
the  parties  might  be  disguised,  and  in  case  the  villains  were  to  fail  in 
making  terms,  they  might  take  desperate  chances  to  obtain  the  money. 

Geo.  W.  Walling,  Superintendent. 

Notwithstanding  the  caution  of  the  Superintendent, 
the  family  proposed  in  good  faith  to  deliver  the  money 
at  the  appointed  place.  In  order  to  notify  the  abduc- 
tors of  this  purpose,  the  following  personal  was  pub- 
lished in  the  New  York  Herald  of  November  15th: 

Saul  of  Tarsus.  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  Wednesday,  the  iSth  inst.  All 
day.  F.  W.  Lin'COLN 

On  the  17th  of  November,  my  wife's  brother  and  her 
nephew  took  rooms  at  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  regis- 
tering the  name  F.  W.  Lincoln,  to  correspond  with  the 
personal,  remaining  continuously  in  their  room  from 
the  time  of  their  arrival  until  the  evening  of  the  follow- 
ing day.  They  had  with  them  a  satchel  containing 
;$20,ooo  in  United  States  notes  of  denominations  of  from 
ones  to  tens  as  required,  and  were  kept  in  nervous 
anxiety  the  entire  day.  No  one  called  for  the  money, 
and  on  the  19th,.  the  following  day,  they  published  in 
the  same  paper  a  personal  as  follows : 

Saul  of  Tarsus.  We  have  performed  our  part  to  the  letter,  you  have 
broken  faith;  we  will  have  no  more  trifling;  action  must  now  be  simul- 
taneous. 

No  answer  was  ever  received  to  either  of  the  last  two 
personals.     Thus  was  ended  a  correspondence  charac- 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE  ABDUCTORS.  243 

terized  by  a  heartlessness  and  brutality  unsurpassed  in 
the  annals  of  crime.  Heart-rending  as  was  the  abduc- 
tion in  itself,  the  letters  immeasurably  increased  the 
torture.  It  is  impossible  to  conceive  of  anything  more 
cruel  than  the  continual  threats  to  annihilate  the  child 
should  the  demands  of  the  kidnappers  not  be  fully 
complied  with. 

These  terrible  letters,  full  of  everything  calculated  to 
'Stir  a  parent's  soul  to  the  lowest  depths,  were  in  such 
accord  with  the  cold-blooded  scheme,  that  for  five  long 
months  a  constant  dread  possessed  us  that  the  threats 
they  contained  would  be  literally  executed;  and  though 
our  hearts  yearned  to  hear  something  of  our  suffering 
stolen  one,  yet  each  letter  was  opened  with  fear  and 
trembling.  It  might  announce  our  Charley's  death 
by  murderous  hands,  and  notify  us  of  the  place  where 
his  lifeless  remains  were  deposited,  or  tell  us  how  he 
was  pining  away  in  sickness  and  darkness — away  from 
his  home  and  those  who  loved  him — away  from  the 
sympathy  and  tender  care  of  his  mother — with  none 
near  him  but  such  wretches  as  those  who  stole  him, 
whose  hearts  were  too  hard  to  relent  at  his  cries,  or  to 
be  moved  by  his  sufferings.  None  but  ourselves  can 
ever  know  how  bitter  the  draught  in  the  chalice. 
Truthfully  did  these  villians  say  in  one  of  their  letters, 
"  You  may  think  this  is  too  cruel  for  civilized  persons 
to  perpetrate ;  but  we  tell  you  positively  It  is  the  lot  of 
on9  of  us  to  perform  it."  Monstrous  indeed  is  it,  that 
men  should  be  so  devoid  of  all  human  feelings  as  to 
avow  that  they  even  contemplated  sacrificing  the  life  of 
a  little  child  for  the  sake  of  money,  and  in  advance 
to  notify  the  parents  of  their  purpose.  Yet  it  is  so — to 
realize  it  is  nigh  impossible. 


244  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

The  failure  of  the  abductors  to  come  to  the  hotel  on 
the  1 8th  of  November  for  the  ransom  money,  caused 
our  friends  to  determine  not  to  hand  over  the  money 
unless  Charley  was  given  up  at  the  same  time;  hence 
in  the  last  personal  it  is  positively  said  that  the  ex- 
change must  now  be  simultaneous.  The  kidnappers 
evidently  were  afraid  to  show  themselves,  notwithstand- 
ing the  boldness  they  assumed  and  the  security  they 
professed;  and  when  the  time  to  fill  an  appointment 
arrived  they  failed  to  carry  out  their  plans.  The  search 
for  them  was  continued  with  unabated  activity.  Their 
usual  haunts  were  watched,  and  a  constant  eye  kept  on 
the  various  saloons  along  the  river-front  and  elsewhere. 
A  detective  obtained  a  situation  in  a  restaurant  as  an 
attendant  where  it  was  said  they  occasionally  took  their 
meals.  Officers  were  placed  in  a  house  opposite  the 
premises  of  a  notorious  receiver  of  stolen  goods,  where 
they  usually  disposed  of  their  plunder.  On  several  oc- 
casions detectives  were  close  on  the  tracks  of  the  crim- 
inals, and  at  one  time  they  entered  a  suspected  saloon 
to  find  that  the  men  had  left  there  about  an  hour  before. 
All  knowledge  of  their  whereabouts  was  denied  by 
those  who  ought  to  have  known,  and  who  actually  did 
know.  Notwithstanding  all  these  difificulties,  they  were 
hunted  for  as  by  bloodhounds  after  their  prey.'  They 
felt  that  they  were  not  safe  anywhere — the  letters  posted 
in  so  many  different  places  indicate  that  they  were  in- 
deed fugitives — and  so  hard  were  they  pressed  by  the 
officers  that  they  were  forced  to  remain  almost  wholly 
on  the  water,  visiting  New  York  at  rare  intervals,  and 
then  only  in  the  night  in  the  most  secret  way.  Soon 
they  were  brought  to  distress  and  suffering  for  both 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE  ABDUCTORS.  245 

food  and  clothing',  and  under  these  circumstances 
resorted  to  burglary  to  supply  their  most  pressing 
necessities. 

On  the  eastern  side  of  the  upper  bay  of  New  York, 
the  Long  Island  shore  rises  into  an  uneven  and  beauti- 
fully wooded  bluff  known  as  Bay  Ridge.  Along  its 
slopes  and  summits  are  a  large  number  of  villas  and 
cottages,  mostly  summer  residences  of  wealthy  citizens 
of  New  York.  It  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  de- 
lightful places  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  metropolis. 
On  one  of  the  highlands  that  curve  the  water's  edge 
— about  a  mile  distant  from  the  shore — are  two  hand- 
some dwellings,  one  of  which  is  occupied  permanently 
by  I.  Holmes  Van  Brunt,  the  other  as  a  summer  resi- 
dence by  his  brother.  Judge  Van  Brunt,  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  New  York.  The  houses  are  separated  by  a 
narrow  lawn.  Before  closing  the  house  for  the  season 
the  Judge  furnished  it  with  a  burglar-alarm  telegraph, 
which  conveys  information  of  the  slightest  interference 
with  any  of  its  doors  or  windows  into  the  bed-room  of 
his  brother  in  the  adjoining  house.  On  the  morning 
of  December  14th,  at  two  o'clock,  this  alarm-bell  rang 
violently.  Mr.  Van  Brunt  was  at  once  awakened,  and 
immediately  called  his  son  Albert,  who  was  asleep. 
When  Albert  came  down  stairs  the  father  said,  "Go 
over  and  see  what  has  sounded  that  alarm;  I  think  the 
wind  has  blown  open  one  of  those  blinds  again,"  an  oc- 
currence which  had  more  than  once  before  caused  the 
bell  to  ring.  The  young  man  went,  first  taking  the  pre- 
caution to  put  a  pistol  in  his  pocket.  Approaching  his 
uncle's  house  he  noticed  a  flickering  light  through  the 
blinds  of  one  of  the  windows;  he  returned  and  told  his 


246  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

father  about  the  light,  procured  a  lantern  for  himself, 
and  went  to  arouse  William  Scott,  the  Judge's  gardener, 
who  lived  in  a  cottage  close  by,  and  who  had  the  keys 
of  the  Judge's  house.  On  their  way  back,  Scott  and 
Albert  ascertained  that  more  than  one  man  was  in  the 
house  with  the  light.  They  then  awoke  Herman  Frank, 
the  hired  man,  and  after  placing  one  man  in  front  and 
another  behind  the  Judge's  house,  Albert  returned  to 
his  father  and  reported  what  he  had  seen  and  done. 
His  father,  although  seriously  suffering  from  illness,  after 
getting  together  the  arms  in  the  house,  joined  his  son, 
and  calling  the  gardener  and  hired  man  to  him,  said, 
*'  Now  boys,  we  have  work  to  do,  and  must  understand 
each  other;  we  must  capture  those  fellows  if  we  can 
without  killing  them,  but  if  they  resist  we  will  have  to 
defend  ourselves.  Albert,  you  and  Scott  stand  before  the 
front  door,  Frank  and  I  will  take  the  rear,  and  whatever 
happens  afterward,  let  us  remain  in  the  positions  we  first 
take  up;  because  if  we  move  around  we  will  be  certain 
in  the  dark  to  shoot  one  another  instead  of  the  thieves. 
Whichever  way  they  come,  let  the  two  who  meet  them 
take  care  of  them  as  best  they  can ;  if  they  come  out 
and  scatter  both  ways,  then  we  will  all  have  a  chance 
to  work."  The  party  took  their  respective  places  ;  the 
night  was  pitch  dark,  cold  and  wet.  The  watchers 
waited  patiently  for  nearly  an  hour,  while  the  burglars 
went  through  every  room  in  the  house,  with  the  rays 
from  their  dark  lanterns  flashing  now  and  then  through 
the  chinks  in  the  shutters.  At  length  they  came  down 
to  the  basement  floor  and  into  the  pantry.  Through  the 
window  of  this  little  apartment  Mr.  Van  Brunt  could  see 
distinctly  the  faces  of  the  two  burglars.     He  could  have 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE  ABDUCTORS.  24/ 

shot  them  down  there  and  then  in  perfect  safety  to  him- 
setf  and  his  companions,  but  he  wished  to  refrain  from 
taking  hfe  until  he  could  be  certain  that  the  robbers 
would  show  resistance.  He  did  not  wish  to  kill  them 
in  the  house,  nor  in  any  other  way  than  in  self-defense. 
The  elder  Van  Brunt,  finding  he  was  growing  numb 
and  weak  from  the  effects  of  the  cold,  damp  air  of  the  in- 
clement night,  determined  "to  push  things,"  and  stand- 
ing in  front  of  the  back  door,  ordered  the  hired  man  to 
open  it  quickly.  In  trying  to  get  the  key  into  the  key- 
hole he  made  a  noise  which  the  quick-eared  burglars 
heard.  Their  light  went  out  immediately,  and  their 
footsteps  were  heard  ascending  the  cellar  stairs.  Mr. 
Van  Brunt  and  his  man  moved  towards  the  trap-door 
of  the  cellar,  the  lock  of  which  had  been  broken.  This 
was  soon  opened,  and  the  body  of  a  man  started  up, 
followed  by  the  head  of  another.  Mr.  Van  Brunt  cried 
out  "  Halt,"  in  response  to  which  two  pistol  shots  from 
the  cellar  door  flashed  almost  in  his  face,  but  without 
injuring  him.  He  then  fired  his  shot-gun  at  the  fore- 
most man,  and  a  cry  of  agony  followed.  The  other 
man  fired  at  him  a  second  time,  and  then  ran  towards 
the  front  of  the  house.  There  he  dashed  almost  into 
the  arms  of  the  younger  Van  Brunt,  at  whom  he  fired 
two  more  shots,  luckily  missing  him  also,  and  before 
the  pistol  could  be  fired  again  his  arm  was  struck  down 
by  a  blow  from  Mr.  Van  Brunt's  shot-gun,  which  was 
shattered.  Uttering  a  terrible  oath  the  burglar  now  re- 
treated, but  before  he  had  gone  many  rods  Mr.  Van 
Brunt  sent  a  bullet  into  the  would-be  murderer's  back. 
The  desperate  house-breaker  staggered  for  an  instant, 
and  then  fell  dead. 


248  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Meanwhile  the  other  burglar,  although  mortally 
wounded  from  the  elder  Van  Brunt's  first  fire,  continued 
to  shoot  in  the  dark  until  he  was  exhausted.  The 
firing  now  ceased,  the  only  thmg  positively  known,  after 
the  second  or  third  shot,  being  the  gratifying  fact  that 
while  none  of  the  defenders  of  the  Judge's  property 
were  hurt,  the  two  burglars  were  literally  riddled  with 
shot  and  bullets.  One  was  stone  dead,  with  his  empty 
revolver  under  his  head ;  the  other  lived  until  five 
o'clock — only  about  two  hours.  Several  neighbors, 
aroused  by  the  firing,  came  rushing  to  the  place,  and  got 
there  by  the  time  the  fight  was  over ;  one  of  whom  was 
asked  by  the  wounded  man  to  give  him  some  whisky. 
After  tasting  it,  he  pushed  it  away,  and  called  for  water, 
which  he  drank  eagerly.  He  was  then  asked  who 
they  were,  and  where  they  came  from  ?  He  replied, 
"  Men,  I  wont  lie  to  you ;  my  name  is  Joseph  Douglas, 
and  that  man  over  there  is  William  Mosher."  He 
spelled  M-o-s-H-E-R-'s  name,  adding,  "  Mosher  lives  in 
the  city  (New  York),  and  I  have  no  home.  I  am  a 
single  man,  and  have  no  relatives  except  a  brother  and 
sister,  whom  I  have  not  seen  for  twelve  or  fifteen  years. 
Mosher  is  a  married  man,  and  has  five  children." 
Believing  himself  to  be  mortally  wounded,  he  con- 
tinued :  "  I  have  ;^40  in  my  pocket ;  I  wish  to  be  buried 
with  it ;  I  made  it  honestly."  Then  he  said,  "  It's  no  use 
lying  now :  Mosher  and  I  stole  Charley  Ross  from 
Gertnanto^vn"  When  asked  why  they  stole  him,  he 
replied,  "  To  make  money."  He  was  then  asked  who 
had  charge  of  the  child  ;  to  which  he  replied,  "  Mosher 
knows  all  about  the  child ;  ask  him."  He  was  then 
told  that  Mosher  was  dead,  and  was  raised  up  so  that 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  249 

he  could  see  the  dead  body  of  his  partner  in  guilt.  He 
exclaimed,  "  God  help  his  poor  wife  and  family."  To 
the  question,  "could  he  tell  where  the  child  was;"  he 
answered,  "  God  knows  I  tell  you  the  truth  ;  I  don't 
know  where  he  is  ;  Mosher  knew."  The  same  question 
was  repeated  a  number  of  times  to  him ;  but  he  gave 
no  further  information,  but  said,  "  Superintendent  Wal- 
ling knows  all  about  us,  and  was  after  us,  and  now  he 
shall  have  us.  Send  him  word.  The  child  will  be 
returned  home  safe  and  sound  in  a  few  days."  He  told 
his  inquirers  that  they  had  come  over  in  a  sloop  which 
was  lying  in  the  cove,  and  begged  them  not  to  question 
him  any  more,  and  not  to  move  him,  as  it  hurt  him  to 
talk  or  to  move.  He  remained  conscious  until  about 
fifteen  minutes  before  his  death.  Thus  writhing  in 
agony,  lying  on  the  spot  where  he  had  fallen,  drenched 
with  the  descending  rain,  ended  the  purposeless  and 
miserable  life  of  one  who  aided  in  rending  the  heart- 
strings of  a  family  unknown  to  him,  and  in  outraging 
the  feelings  of  the  civilized  world.  So  swiftly  did 
retribution  come  upon  his  companion,  that  not  one 
word  escaped  his  lips  :  no  message  to  his  family — no 
confession  of  his  terrible  crimes — no  prayer  was  he  per- 
mitted to  utter :  suddenly,  as  by  the  stroke  of  light- 
ning, was  his  soul  ushered  into  eternity.  Surely  "  the 
way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard." 

On  the  morning  of  the  14th  December,  Supt.  Wal- 
ling received  a  telegram  from  Justice  Church,  of  Bay 
Ridge,  stating  that  two  men,  Mosher  and  Douglas,  had 
been  shot  and  killed  in  attempting  a  burglary,  and  one 
of  them  had  confessed  that  they  were  the  abductors 

of  Charley    Ross,  and   that   the  Superintendent  was 
II* 


250  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

searching  for  them.  Supt.  Walling  telegraphed  at  once 
in  reply  that  they  were  the  very  men  he  was  searching 
for,  and  he  would  send  a  detective  to  identify  them. 
Detective  Silleck  was  at  once  dispatched  to  Bay 
Ridge,  and  as  soon  as  he  saw  the  dead  bodies  of 
Mosher  and  Douglas,  he  said,  pointing  to  the  one,  and 
then  to  the  other,  ''That  is  Joe  Douglas,  and  tJtat  is  Bill 
Mosher.  Take  the  glove  off  his  left  hand,  and  you'll 
find  a  withered  finger."  Detective  Sellick  knew  that 
in  his  early  life  Mosher  had  lost  the  dividing  cartilage 
of  the  nose  from  disease,  and  his  appearance  and 
speech  from  that  cause  was  peculiar.  He  also  knew 
that  from  a  felon  the  first  finger  on  Mosher's  left  hand 
had  withered  away  to  a  point,  and  the  nail  on  the 
finger  had  grown  to  the  shape  of  a  parrot's  beak.  To 
conceal  this  defect,  he  usually  wore  gloves.  On  receipt 
of  the  dispatch  from  Bay  Ridge,  Supt.  Walling  tele- 
graphed to  Capt.  Heins  the  intelligence  of  the  death  of 
Mosher  and  Douglas,  with  the  confession  of  the  latter, 
and  requested  him  to  come  to  New  York.  The  Cap- 
tain, as  soon  as  he  received  the  telegram,  said  that  if 
the  men  had  not  told  where  the  child  was  concealed, 
there  would  be  greater  diflficulty  in  finding  him  now 
than  there  would  have  been  had  they  lived  ;  for  while 
they  lived,  there  was  a  prospect  of  arresting  them,  and 
through  them  of  recovering  the  child.  Mr.  McKean 
with  Captain  Heins  left  Philadelphia  by  the  next  train, 
first  arranging  with  my  nephew  to  telegraph  him  to 
take  my  son  Walter  and  the  gardener,  who  had  seen 
the  men  driving  on  the  lane,  to  New  York^  for  the  pur- 
pose of  identification  in  case  the  bodies  were  not  disfig- 
ured, and  could  be  recognized.     In  accordance  with 


LAST  LETTERS  FROM  THE  ABDUCTORS.     2$! 

this   arrangement^   the   following  telegram   was   sent, 
dated  New  York,  December  14,  1874: 

Frank  D.  Lewis. — Superintendent  says  the  bodies  are  not  disfigured. 
Bring  Walter  over.  Have  hope  of  finding  where  the  child  is  to-night. 
Tell  the  chief,  and  keep  quiet.  \Vm.  R.  Heins,  CaJ>t.  Detectives. 

On  the  following  morning,  December  15th,  Walter, 
with  his  uncle  Joseph  W.  Lewis  and  Peter  Callahan, 
the  gardener,  went  to  New  York  in  response  to  the  tele- 
gram received  from  Captain  Heins.  Walter  had  not 
heard  of  the  tragedy,  and  did  not  know  for  what  object 
he  was  taken  to  New  York.  While  there  no  one  was  al- 
lowed to  converse  with  him  on  the  subject.  The  reason 
for  this  was,  that  he  might  see  the  dead  bodies  of 
Mosher  and  Douglas  before  any  one  could  speak  to 
him  about  what  had  taken  place  on  the  previous  day  at 
Bay  Ridge,  so  that  when  taken  to  the  Morgue  in  Brook- 
lyn, to  which  the  bodies  had  been  removed,  he  was  in 
perfect  ignorance  of  the  purpose  of  his  visit,  or  of  the 
catastrophe  that  had  necessitated  it.  The  bodies  had 
been  stowed  away  in  a  vault  the  night  before.  When 
they  were  brought  out  the  child  Walter  was  startled  at 
first,  and  seemed  greatly  agitated;  soon  he  recovered 
himself,  and  the  recognition,  as  described  by  an  eye- 
witness, is  as  follows :  "  When  the  bodies  were  shown 
to  little  Walter  he  was  left  to  himself,  no  one  asking 
any  questions.  His  recognition  of  Mosher,  the  older 
of  the  two  burglars,  was  slow  and  gradual,  his  memory 
reviving  by  degrees ;  but  the  instant  he  saw  the  body 
of  the  younger  man  he  said,  *  Oh,  that's  awful  like  him; 
he's  the  driver' — meaning  the  driver  of  the  buggy. 
These  exclamations  came  quick,  spontaneous,  and  with 
an  earnestness  that  was  as  convincing  as  they  were 


252  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

impressive.  Subsequently  he  said,  'He/  pointing  to 
Douglas  alias  Clark,  *was  the  one  that  gave  me  the 
money  to  buy  the  fire  crackers.*  Again  he  said,  '  He 
was  the  one  that  gave  me  the  candy,  and  the  other 
one,'  pointing  to  Mosher,  *he  sometimes  had  candy 
too.*  Peter  Callahan  was  equally  positive  about  Doug- 
las (alias  Clark)  as  the  driver  of  the  buggy,  and  ex- 
pressed a  strong  belief  as  to  Mosher.  He  said,  '  I  am 
certain,  from  his  general  appearance,  that  he  was  one 
of  the  men,  but  whenever  I  attempted  to  look  at  him 
he  put  up  to  his  face  a  handkerchief  which  partly  hid 
it.  I  suppose  he  did  so  to  hide  the  deformity  of  his 
nose.  I  recognize  the  body  fully.'  The  identification 
of  the  bodies  as  those  of  the  two  men  who  had  been 
seen  on  Washington  Lane,  Germantown,  and  who  had 
driven  the  children  away,  fully  satisfied  those  who  were 
acquainted  with  the  suspicions  so  long  entertained,  that 
William  Mosher  and  Joseph  Douglas  were  the  real 
abductors  of  my  son,  Charley  Ross. 

Very  early  on  Monday  morning  the  intelligence  of 
the  tragic  death  of  the  burglars,  and  the  dying  confes- 
sion of  one  of  them,  became  known  in  the  city  of  New 
York,  and,  through  the  Associated  Press,  was  tele- 
graphed throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land. 
It  was  the  chief  topic  of  conversation.  So  much  had 
been  said  and  written  about  the  abduction  during  the 
past  five  months,  and  so  few  persons  knew  that  the  men 
who  were  killed  at  Bay  Ridge  had  been  for  a  long  time 
suspected  of  the  crime,  and  were  then  even  being 
hunted  by  the  police,  that  when  it  was  published  that 
one  of  them  had  in  his  dying  moments  confessed  that 
he  and  his  companion  had  stolen  Charley  Ross,  an 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  253 

intensified  interest  was  everywhere  manifested.  There 
was  added  to  the  crime  a  fresh  and  awful  element  of 
tragedy.  The  sudden  death  by  violence  of  the  two 
villains  struck  the  community  as  a  just  and  startling 
act  of  retribution  from  God. 

When  merited  punishment  overtakes  deep  guilt,  the 
public  sense  of  justice  is  satisfied;  but  when  the  pun- 
ishment is  astonishing  and  unexpected,  and  the  sudden 
retribution  which  falls  on  one  offense  in  the  very  act  of 
its  commission,  and  which  might  seem  greater  than  its 
wickedness  deserves,  reveals  another  and  darker  crime, 
which  shows  that  the  criminals  had  sinned  up  to  the 
full  measure  of  the  fearful  penalty,  reverent  minds 
cannot  fail  to  recognize  in  so  wonderful  a  coincidence 
the  directing  hand  of  Providence;  and  even  the  most 
thoughtless  will  be  awakened  to  some  dim  sense  of  a 
moral  Governor  presiding  over  human  affairs.  The 
crime  of  stealing  a  little  child,  and  holding  his  life  sub- 
ject to  the  payment  of  a  large  sum  of  money,  was  of  so 
revolting  a  nature  that  the  whole  community  felt  it  to 
be  an  offense  against  society;  and  wherever  the  sudden 
and  violent  death  of  the  kidnappers  was  announced,  the 
universal  feeling  seemed  to  be  that  God  would  not  per- 
mit such  a  crime  to  stand  unpunished,  or  such  criminals 
to  exist.  Certainly  the  event  must  be  classed  among 
the  romances  of  crime;  for  here  were  two  men,  hunted 
through  many  months,  tracked  hither  and  thither  by  tire- 
less officers,  yet  escaping  the  consequences  of  their  great 
crime  only  to  be  shot  dead  for  a  far  less  heinous  offense, 
and  one  in  no  way  connected  with  the  kidnapping. 
The  killing  of  two  burglars  at  the  same  time  is  itself  a 
rare  and  extraordinary  event,  well  worthy  of  comment, 
even  had  the  victims  not  been  the  long-sought  kidnap- 


254  CHARLEY  ROSS, 

pers.    Besides,  in  the  contest  in  which  they  were  en- 
gaged, although  the  burglars   made   every  effort  to 
defend  themselves  by  maiming  or  killing  their  oppo- 
nents, and  fired  many  shots,  yet  they  injured  not  one 
of  their  assailants,  not  even  slightly.     Then  the  revela- 
tion extorted  by  approaching  death  from  the  younger 
of  the  two  burglars  is  one  of  the  noteworthy  incidents 
in  the  history  of  crime.     The  pages  of  fiction  present 
nothing  more  remarkable  than  that  yol-untary  confes- 
sion and  its  surroundings.     The  thick  darkness  of  the 
last  hours  of  a  stormy  December  night  enveloped  the 
dying  thief,  as  he  lay  on  the  wet  ground  stricken  with 
his  death-wound.     A  dim  lantern,  serving  only  to  ren- 
der the  surrounding  darkness  barely  visible,  revealed 
one  or  two  persons  standing  over  the  fatally-wounded 
man.      His   first  thought  was   the  alleviation   of  his 
physical  suffering — he  begged  for  whisky,  which  was 
brought;  but  finding  himself  unable  to  swallow  it,  he 
then  asked  for  water,  which  he  drank  without  relief  to 
his  excruciating  sufferings.     Then  came  upon  him  a 
sense  that  his  worthless  and  miserable  life  was  fast  ebb- 
ing away,  and  the  pangs  of  conscience  for  a  few  brief 
moments  became  even  stronger  than  the  torture  of  his 
wounds,  and  forced  him  to  unburden  his  mind  of  a 
guilty  secret:    "It's  no  use  lying  now,"  said  he,  "I 
helped  to  steal  Charley  Ross."     The  terror  of  death, 
and  fear  of  the  just  retribution  which  lies  beyond  this 
world,  unlocked  his  guilty  tongue.    This  sudden  awak- 
ening of  a  dormant  conscience  in  view  of  the  near  ap- 
proach of  death,  affords  strong  evidence  of  the  existence 
of  that  moral  sense  which  our  religion  teaches  us  to 
believe  will  survive  even  the  blackest  career  of  crime. 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE  ABDUCTORS.  25$ 

Tortured  by  his  suddenly  awakened  conscience,  this 
hardened  miscreant  felt  impelled  to  unburden  his  mind 
by  a  confession  which  is  one  of  the  striking  features  of 
this  singular  tragedy.  His  was  the  bad  end  of  a  bad 
man — the  terrible  ending  of  a  hard  and  bitter  life. 

But  while  the  universal  sentiment  at  first  was  that 
these  vile,  bad  men  had  met  their  deserts,  yet,  on  sec- 
ond thought,  a  feeling  of  disappointment  followed,  that 
they  had  not  been  captured  instead  of  being  killed,  and 
forced  to  reveal  their  guilty  secret.  The  greater  crim- 
inal who  devised  the  plot — the  author  of  the  cruel  letters, 
and  who  probably  was  the  only  one  of  the  pair  who 
knew  where  the  child  was  secreted — died  instantly, 
without  a  word — the  word  for  which  we  had  toiled  for 
months.  Efforts  were  at  once  made  to  find  a  trace  of 
the  hiding-p*lace  of  the  child.  Nothing  was  found  on 
the  persons  of  the  dead  burglars  that  indicated  who 
they  were,  or  gave  any  light  on  the  subject  of  the  ab- 
duction. They  had  with  them  a  complete  set  of  burg- 
lar's tools,  and  each  one  had  a  revolving  pistol  and  a 
large  knife.  The  boat  on  which  the  burglars  came  to 
Bay  Ridge  was  thoroughly  searched:  there  were  found 
on  it  a  few  copies  of  the  New  York  Herald  and  a  copy 
o*'  the  New  York  Evenijig  Telegram^  in  which  was  a 
burlesque  account  of  the  finding  of  Charley  Ross; 
nothing,  however,  was  discovered  to  give  the  least  clue 
upon  which  to  work.  The  boat,  it  was  subsequently 
ascertained,  had  been  stolen  on  the  night  of  the  27th  of 
September,  at  Bridgeport,  Connecticut:  when  taken  it 
was  a  cat-rigged  sail-boat,  but  had  been  altered  by 
Mosher  into  a  sloop  before  the  tragedy  on  Bay  Ridge. 

It  was  supposed  that  Mosher  and  Douglas  had  per- 


256  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

haps  two  accomplices,  and  the  pohcy  now  adopted  was 
to  discover  them  by  hunting  up  all  their  associates. 
Mosher's  wife  and  her  brother,  Westervelt,  were  the 
means  through  whom  this  information  was  sought. 
Hours  were  spent  by  Superintendent  Walling  and  Mr. 
McKean  in  questioning  them,  for  they  were  unwilling 
witnesses.  Mrs.  Mosher  said  that  her  husband  had  told 
her  that  the  child  had  been  placed  with  an  old  man  and 
woman,  and  was  well  cared  for,  but  she  did  not  know 
who  his  keepers  were,  or  where  they  lived.  Superin- 
tendent Walling  received  a  letter  about  this  time,  stating 
that  an  old  man  and  woman  were  living  alone  on  an 
island  in  Long  Island  Sound,  whose  conduct  was  very 
suspicious,  as  they  would  not  permit  any  one  to  come 
on  the  island.  This  information  was  thought  to  be  so 
important  that,  although  it  was  night,  an  officer  was 
dispatched  to  watch  the  shore,  and  prevent  any  person 
from  going  to  the  island,  or  from  coming  off  to  the 
mainland.  Early  the  following  morning  several  per- 
sons, with  two  or  three  officers,  after  considerable  risk 
of  shipwreck  amidst  the  ice,  landed  on  the  island.  It 
was  thoroughly  examined,  but  they  found  no  evidences 
of  there  ever  having  been  a  child  kept  there.  The  old 
people,  although  they  had  heard  of  the  abduction,  had 
not  heard  of  the  killing  of  the  abductors,  and  stated  that 
they  had  been  much  annoyed  by  roving  marauders  who 
.came  to  steal  poultry,  and  that  they  were  suspicious  of 
visitors.  An  old  woman  was  heard  of  in  Connecticut, 
whose  mysterious  movements  were  suspicious.  She 
was  a  friend  of  Mosher,  had  loaned  him  money  to 
begin  business  at  one  time,  and  was  said  to  be  the  very 
kind  of  person  with  whom  tlie  child  might  be  placed. 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  25/ 

She  occasionally  went  to  Brooklyn  and  New  York,  but 
moved  about  as  if  she  was  afraid  of  something;  and 
besides  she  had  several  children  living  with  her,  one 
about  the  age  of  Charley  Ross,  and  this  boy  had  dis- 
appeared. Here  was  a  case  which  looked  very  much 
as  if  it  would  furnish  a  solution  to  the  secret.  The 
old  woman's  home  was  visited;  stubborn  and  belliger- 
ent, she  protested  she  knew  nothing  about  anything, 
and  would  not  tell  if  she  did :  said,  "  I  knew  that  Mo- 
sher  was  not  strictly  honest,  but  that  was  nobody's 
affair,  if  I  chose  to  aid  him  in  earning  his  living  de- 
cently." Hours  were  spent  in  plying  her  with  ques- 
tions, and  finally  all  her  mystery  was  accounted  for. 
She  owned  some  tumble-down  tenement  houses  in 
Brooklyn,  and  was  in  constant  dread  lest  officials  should 
come  to  collect  taxes,  or  compel  her  to  put  them  in 
habitable  condition.  The  little  boy  which  had  been  with 
her  was  the  child  of  her  niece,  and  was  dead.  During 
his  sickness  he  had  been  attended  by  the  Mayor  of  the 
city,  who  was  a  physician ;  his  photograph  was  shown 
to  the  officers,  and  they  were  satisfied  that  she  never 
had  our  little  boy.  When  the  old  woman  really  un- 
derstood the  object  of  the  visit,  she  was  enthusiastic  in 
her  desire  to  serve  the  Ross  family,  and  offered  to  re- 
turn to  New  York  with  the  officers,  and  do  what  she 
could  to  find  the  child.  Thus  again  were  hours  spent 
on  a  trail  which  appeared  to  have  something  real  in  it, 
but  which  when  investigated  proved  valueless. 

About  this  time  a  statement  was  made  public,  that 
the  body  of  a  boy  was  found  in  Newark  Bay  on  the 
19th  of  November,  and  after  keeping  the  remains  four 
days,  and  no  one  appearing  to  claim  the  body,  they 


258  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

buried  it.  The  child  was  said  to  be  about  four  years 
old,  light  complexioned,  light  silky  hair  cut  close,  blue 
eyes.  I  received  several  letters,  stating  that  he 
answered  the  published  description  of  my  son,  and  that 
it  was  believed  he  had  fallen  from  a  boat  and  was 
drowned.  Although  we  very  much  doubted  if  he  was 
Charley,  because  all  agreed  that  the  child  which  was 
found  had  blue  eyes,  while  ours  has  brown  or  hazel 
eyes ;  yet,  to  be  certain,  his  body  was  exhumed  and 
examined.  The  physician  present  wrote  to  us  that  the 
child  could  not  have  been  more  than  about  20  months 
old.  He  had  but  few  teeth,  had  blue  eyes,  which  con- 
clusively confirmed  us  in  our  judgment  that  the  child 
was  not  Charley. 

In  the  different  interviews  which  Superintendent 
Walling  and  Mr.  McKean  had  with  Westervelt,  many 
points  of  interest  connected  with  the  case  were,  by 
.searching  questions,  dragged  out  of  him.  This  will  be 
more  particularly  noticed  at  another  time.  Among 
other  tilings,  he  stated  that  he  had  slept  at  a  hotel  in 
the  same  room  with  Douglas,  Saturday  night,  Decem- 
ber 1 2th,  the  night  before  the  killing,  and  Douglas  then 
told  him  that  the  child  was  living,  and  Mosher,  despair- 
ing of  getting  the  ransom  by  the  plans  proposed,  was 
considering  a  change  in  them,  and  had  partly  worked 
out  another  plan  for  re-opening  the  negotiations  on  the 
basis  of  a  simultaneous  exchange.  Circumstantial  evi- 
dence was  thus  obtained,  confirming  the  dying  state- 
ment of  Douglas,  that  the  child  was  living  at  the  time 
of  the  death  of  the  men.  This  information,  obtained 
by  Mr.  McKean,  so  contrar>'  to  the  popular  belief  on  the 
subject — although  those  familiar  with  the  whole  case 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM   THE   ABDUCTORS.  259 

never  had  any  reason  to  suppose  that  the  child  had 
died  or  been  destroyed — was  an  additional  incentive  to 
hasten  the  efforts  to  discover  the  person  who  had  pos- 
session of  the  child.  Through  Westervelt,  two  of 
Mosher's  associates  were  heard  of,  who  lived  in  Balti- 
more. Officer  Wood,  of  Philadelphia,  was  forthwith 
sent  to  that  city  to  look  them  up.  They  were  found 
living-  in  miserable  quarters  in  the  midst  of  squalor  and 
wretchedness,  and  brought  to  Philadelphia,  where  they 
were  closely  examined.  This  episode  was  almost 
laughable.  These  fellows,  who  had  been  thieves  and 
receivers  of  stolen  goods,  were  great  cowards,  espe- 
cially fearing  "vigilance  committees."  They  had  no 
sooner  got  to  Philadelphia,  where  they  arrived  before 
daylight,  than  they  were  taken  to  a  tavern  where  some 
drunken  brawlers  were  fighting.  Taken  from  this  place 
quite  nervous,  they  were  put  into  a  room  at  the  police 
station,  where  muskets  and  ropes  are  kept.  This  was 
too  much  for  them.  They  felt  sure  of  being  lynched, 
and  one  of  them,  getting  down  on  his  knees,  begged 
piteously  to  be  let  off.  Throughout  their  examination, 
they  evinced  great  terror;  and  afterwards,  some  victuals 
being  given  them,  they  declared  the  food  had  been  pois- 
oned, complained  of  illness,  and  refused  to  eat.  These 
fellows  told  what  they  knew,  which  was  not  much,  and 
then  were  sent  back  to  Baltimore.  Evidently  they 
were  not  the  kind  of  people  to  whom  Mosher  would 
confide  a  secret  of  such  vital  importance  as  the  abduc- 
tion of  a  child  and  his  place  of  concealment. 

Those  engaged  in  the  search  had  become  accustomed 
to  disappointments  and  delays  ;  but  instead  of  being 
discouraged,  began  again  with  renewed  zeal  after  each 


260  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

and  every  disappointment.  Everything  in  the  nature 
of  a  clue  was  followed  up  as  quickly  as  the  railroad  and 
telegraph  would  enable  the  searchers  to  do  the  work, 
by  night  and  by  day,  without  any  cessation.  There 
was  a  hope,  after  the  abductors  were  killed,  that  their 
accomplices  would  set  the  child  free ;  and  instructions 
were  given  to  the  whole  police  force  of  New  York,  to 
be  on  the  lookout  for  a  stray  child,  and  if  such  should 
be  found  in  any  respects  answering  the  description  of 
Charley  Ross,  to  send  him  immediately  to  Police 
Headquarters. 

Considerable  excitement  was  occasioned  at  the  Cen- 
tral Office  one  afternoon  by  the  report  that  Charley 
Ross,  the  long-lost  child,  had  been  found  by  a  police- 
man on  the  Bowery,  and  had  been  placed  in  charge  of 
the  Superintendent.  At  first  sight,  before  questioning 
the  boy,  the  Superintendent  thought  he  certainly  had 
the  right  child.  He  was  about  five  years  of  age,  had 
long,  curly,  flaxen  hair,  dark  hazel  eyes,  and  the  features 
bore  a  striking  resemblance  to  the  pictures  of  Charley. 
The  suspicion  was  strengthened  by  the  child,  who,  when 
asked  his  name,  said  it  was  Charley.  On  being  further 
questioned  he  gave  his  father's  name  and  residence, 
and  was  recognized  by  an  officer  as  a  child,  who  had 
been  brought  to  a  station-house  once  before  on  the 
supposition  that  he  was  Charley  Ross.  The  authori- 
ties not  being  able  to  get  a  real  clue  to  the  custodian 
of  the  child,  and  the  abductors  being  dead,  were  com- 
pelled to  examine  into  everything  which  was  brought 
to  their  notice,  however  improbable,  with  the  hope  that 
something  would  be  found  out  which  would  reveal  the 
hiding-place  of  the  child.     This  imposed  on  them  an 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM    THE  ABDUCTORS.  26l 

immense  amount  of  labor,  which  was  cheerfully  per- 
formed ;  and,  although  disappointed  so  often,  yet  when- 
ever anything  fresh  was  started  they  readily  undertook 
to  investigate  it  with  ardor  and  zeal  in  the  face  of  innu- 
merable failures.  This  persistent  search  was  continued 
from  the  time  of  the  killing  of  the  abductors  until  the 
20th  of  December  without  any  favorable  results,  and 
the  mystery  still  remained  as  inexplicable  as  it  had  ever 
been. 

At  this  point  Mrs.  Ross's  brothers,  seeing  that  there 
was  scarcely  a  probability  of  finding  the  child  by  the 
means  which  had  been  employed,  determined  to  make 
an  effort  to  end  the  matter  by  offering  a  reward  for 
Charley,  promising  to  ask  no  questions  of  the  person 
who  should  return  him,  or  who  should  give  informa- 
tion which  would  lead  thereto.  This  advertisement 
appeared  December  23d,  1874,  in  the  papers  of  all  the 
principal  cities,  over,  my  name,  and  is  as  follows : 

$5,000  REWARD 
Five  thousand  dollars  reward  will  be  paid  for  the  return, 

WITHIN   TEN  DAYS, 

From  this  date,  to  any  one  of  the  addresses  named  below,  of  my  son, 

CHARLES  BREWSTER  ROSS, 
Aged  four  years  and  seven  months,  who  was  taken  from  Germantown, 
July  1st,  1874. 

Being  entirely  satisfied  that  his  abductors  were  killed  at  Bay  Ridge, 
L.  I,,  on  the  14th  inst.,  I  now  offer  the  above  sum  for  his  return,  or  for 
information  which  shall  lead  thereto,  promising  to  ask  no  questions. 

The  boy  may  be  delivered  to  any  one  of  the  following  addresses : 
Ross,  Shott  &  Co.,  No.  304  Market  St.,  Philadelphia. 
Henry  Lewis,  No.  2101  Walnut  St.,  Philadelphia. 
I  Ewis  Brothers  &  Co.,  No.  74  Leonard  St.,  New  York. 
Lewis  Brothers  &  Co.,  No.  63  Franklin  St.,  Bostoru 


262  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

A.  B.  Stoughton,  opposite   Patent  OflSce,  Seventh  St.,  Washington, 

D.  C. 
HoLLiDAY,  Phillips  &  Co.,  No.  21  Hanover  St.,  Baltimore,  Md. 
Or  to  my  residence,  where  information  may  also  be  sent. 

Christian  K.  Ross, 
East  Washington  Lane,  Germantown,  via  Chestnut  Hill  Railroad. 
Philadelphia,  December  2jd,  1874. 

It  has  already  been  stated  that  eflforts  were  made  to 
procure  some  of  Mosher's  writing,  to  compare  it  with 
the  letters  which  I  had  received  from  the  abductors, 
but  without  success,  excepting  the  signature  of  WilHam 
Henderson  to  receipts — that  being  one  of  his  assumed 
names.  Westervelt  had  declared  that  he  did  not  know 
where  to  get  any ;  yet  when  closely  questioned  after  the 
death  of  the  men,  he  told  Mr.  McKean  that  on  the  25th 
of  June  he  was  in  Philadelphia,  and  Mosher  had  written 
a  letter  addressed  to  a  Mrs.  Murdock,  who  attended  the 
lighthouse  at  Rondout;  that  he  carried  that  letter  to 
New  York,  and  mailed  it  there  on  the  26th  of  June,  it 
being  dated  one  day  in  advance  of  the  writing,  so  as  to 
correspond  with  the  date  of  mailing;  and  he  thought  if 
some  person  was  sent  to  see  Mrs.  Murdock,  the  letter 
could  be  obtained  from  her.  Superindendent  Walling 
on  the  24th  of  December  sent  an  officer  with  Wester- 
velt to  Rondout,  and  they  got  the  letter,  difac  simile  of 
which  is  here  given.  It  is  signed  Wm.  Hendricks — 
another  of  the  names  which  Mosher  assumed.  Although 
written  in  Philadelphia,  as  Westervelt  stated,  it  is  dated 
New  York,  as  follows : 

New  York,  yune  26, 1874. 

Mrs.  Murdock. — ^You  must  think  very  strange  of  me  in  not  writing  to 

you  on  the  1st  of  May,  as  you  desired  me.     The  reason  was  that  I  got  a 

good  situation  on  a  vessel  to  go  to  South  America  as  carpenter  on  her. 

I  got  back  about  one  week  ago.     I  don't  know  when  I  shall  be  able  to 


Fac- Simile  of  the  Rondout  Lighthouse  Letter. 


/i^i^/-:?^^i^u.^uK^  v^^^T^/^ 


/^   /7^      ^.'^i^^^^    i?0'.£,^'-2^  yp^f^ 


Fac-Simile  of  the  Rondout  Lighthouse  Letter. 


LAST   LETTERS   FROM    THE   ABDUCTORS.  26/ 

get  up  to  Rondout ;  but  you  please  send  me  the  balance  of  five  due  on 
the  boat.  There  was  85  cents  due  for  repairing  your  row  boat  but  you 
need  not  mind  that.     Send  me  ^5  and  it  will  be  all  square. 

Respectfully,  etc.,  Wm.  Hendricks. 

P.  S. — I  will  inclose  you  an  envelope  with  my  address.  I  am  board- 
ing here  at  present  and  shall  be  for  the  future. 

Both  enveloj>es  were  also  obtained :  the  address  on 
the  envelope  which  Mrs.  Murdock  was  requested  to 
use  when  she  would  answer  his  letter,  is  that  of  the 
house  in  which  Westervelt  lived  at  that  time.  This 
letter,  written  in  his  usual  handwriting,  has  been  care- 
fully compared  by  experts  with  the  disguised  letters 
which  I  received,  and  they  have  decided  that  all  of  them 
were  written  by  the  same  person. 

At  the  time  of  the  killing  of  the  abductors,  I  had  not 
fully  recovered  from  my  illness,  and  for  the  purpose  of 
restoring  my  health  had  been  for  several  weeks  in  my 
native  place,  Middletown,  Pennsylvania,  where  my  wife, 
with  Walter,  had  come  to  see  me.  At  noon  on  the 
14th  of  December,  as  they  were  about  to  return  home, 
he  following  telegram  was  received,  addressed  to  my 
brother-in-law : 

Philadelphia,  December  14,  1874. 
Tell  C.  K.  R.  quietly  that  Mosher  and  Douglas  were  killed  last  night, 
while  committing  a  burglary,  near  New  York.     Douglas  confessed  that 
they  stole  Charley.  Joseph  Ross. 

Our  hopes  were  now  raised  to  the  highest  pitch,  in 
the  anticipation  that  soon  our  dear  little  boy  would  be 
restored  to  us,  and  that  our  anxieties  would  shortly  be 
ended.  We  had  so  long  been  subject  to  alternations 
of  fear  and  hope,  that  our  weary  hearts  were  only  too 
ready  to  catch  at  this  intelligence  as  the  first  real  gleam 
of  light  that  broke  through  the  impenetrable  darkness. 


268  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

Joy  and  happiness  again  resumed  their  wonted  place 
on  Mrs.  Ross's  countenance  as  she  left  me,  with  the 
promise  that  as  soon  as  our  dear  Charley  was  found, 
she  would  telegraph  the  glad  news ;  and  sick  or  well, 
we  would  (should  he  return  before  the  coming  holi- 
days) unite  in  spending  Christmas  day  with  all  our 
loved  ones  to  surround  our  happy  family  board. 

Days  passed  away,  yet  no  intelligence  came ;  truly 
"  hope  deferred  maketh  the  heart  sick."  Months  have 
gone,  and  still  nothing  has  been  heard  of  our  little  boy. 
Years  have  passed,  and  there  has  been  no  solution  of 
the  dread  problem.  Yet  are  we  hopeful,  believing  that 
Providence,  who  so  strangely  suffered  the  abductors  to 
be  taken  away  without  a  sign,  will  further  vindicate  His 
righteous  government,  and  not  permit  us  always  to 
remain  in  ignorance  of  what  has  become  of  our  dear 
little  Charley. 


CHAPTER  X. 

LOST   CHILDREN    RESTORED   TO   THEIR    PARENTS. 

lOTHING  has  been  more  talked  of  and  written 
about  in  this  country  for  months  past  than 
the  abduction  of  Charley  Ross,  a  Httle  boy 
of  Philadelphia  ;"  so  says  an  English  paper  of  January, 
1875. 

For  several  months  before  the  killing  of  the  burglars 
at  Bay  Ridge,  the  public  had  settled  down  in  the  belief 
that  the  child  was  dead ;  but  when  it  became  known 
that  one  of  the  villains  had  confessed  that  he  himself 
aided  in  the  abduction,  and  in  his  dying  moments 
declared  that  the  child  would  be  restored  to  his  home 
within  a  few  days,  the  case  was  invested  anew  with  a 
vivid  and  startling  interest.  Intense  excitement  again 
prevailed  in  this  city,  and  every  report  was  seized  upon 
by  the  public  with  avidity.  And  not  in  the  cities 
alone,  but  throughout  the  country,  people  were  moved 
to  make  the  closest  and  most  vigilant  search.  Evi- 
dence of  this  was  afforded  us  in  numbers  of  letters 
which  began  again  to  pour  in,  describing  children  who 
were  thought  to  bear  a  resemblance  to  the  pictures  of 
Charley,  so  widely  circulated.  Many  singular  facts 
have  been  brought  to  light  in  connection  with  the 
search  in  this  case,  and  children  have  been  found  in 
nearly  every  section  of  the  country,  whose  appearance 
often  led  to  the  belief  that  the  missing  one  was  found. 

(269) 


270  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Some  cases  of  exceptional  interest  deserve  more  than 
a  passing  notice,  and  will  be  given  more  particularly. 
One  of  these  was  that  of  a  boy  found  in  Chester,  Illi- 
nois. The  child  was  brought  to  that  place  by  two 
villainous-looking  men,  one  of  whom  claimed  to  be  his 
father.  The  citizens,  not  believing  the  man's  story,  had 
him  and  the  child  placed  in  charge  of  the  authorities 
of  the  town,  who,  upon  questioning  the  child,  believed 
him  to  have  been  stolen,  and  communicated  by  tele- 
graph with  the  mayor  of  our  city.  Efforts  were  imme- 
diately made  through  the  telegraph  to  find  out  if  he 
was  Charley  ;  but  not  being  able  to  decide  satisfac- 
torily, my  brother,  James  M.  Ross,  was  sent  to  see  the 
child.  He  found  him  sadly  disfigured,  his  face  shame- 
fully marked  with  acid;  his  hair  was  dyed,  his  back  was 
frightfully  scarred,  and  his  whole  appearance  indicated 
that  he  had  been  most  cruelly  abused.  Although  my 
brother  was  satisfied  at  first  sight  that  he  was  not  our 
little  boy,  yet  the  citizens,  fearing  he  might  not  know 
him  in  his  pitiable  condition,  prevailed  on  him  to  defer 
his  decision  until  the  next  day,  it  being  in  the  night 
when  he  arrived  in  the  place.  The  following  morning, 
after  examining  the  child  again,  he  decided  that  he  was 
not  Charley.  When  separated  from  the  man  who  had 
brought  him  to  the  town,  the  boy  gave  the  following 
romantic  story  of  his  adventures  :  He  said,  two  men, 
after  taking  him  from  a  yard  near  his  father's  house, 
had  put  him  in  a  room  and  locked  him  up  until  dark, 
when  they  conveyed  him  to  the  river  bank,  placed  him 
in  a  boat,  and  rowed  him  to  the  other  shore.  There 
they  left  the  boat,  and  made  him  walk  a  long  distance 
through  the  woods.     At  times  he  became  so  weary 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  2/1 

that  he  would  fall  to  the  ground ;  but  they  whipped 
him  with  switches  to  keep  him  awake.  At  length  they 
reached  a  cabin  in  the  forest,  occupied  by  a  woman. 
They  did  not  tarry  long  in  the  hut,  but  started  out  on 
foot  on  a  begging  expedition,  the  boy  doing  most  of 
the  begging,  being  instructed  what  to  say  and  how  to 
act.  His  captors  treated  him  brutally,  and  required 
him  to  obtain  a  dollar  a  day  on  pain  of  severe  punish- 
ment. Some  days  he  would  get  three  or  four  dollars, 
and  at  other  times  he  would  get  almost  nothing.  His 
natural  shrewdness  soon  led  him  to  deceive  his  tyrants; 
when  he  obtained  more  than  a  dollar  he  would  give 
them  the  exact  amount  they  had  fixed  as  his  task,  and 
the  balance  he  would  hide  away  to  use  when  he  failed 
to  get  the  required  sum.  In  this  way  the  two  men  and 
the  woman  and  boy  traveled  through  Illinois,  Indiana, 
Ohio,  Kentucky,  Arkansas,  and  other  States,  the  boy 
begging  money,  and  the  men  and  woman  living  on  it, 
and  generally  getting  drunk  every  night.  At  length 
the  woman  died,  and  the  men  ceased  their  wanderings 
and  stopped  in  Chester. 

The  boy  at  this  time  was  about  seven  years  old,  and, 
although  naturally  bright  and  intelligent,  had  forgotten 
the  name  of  the  city  from  which  he  had  been  stolen,  his 
own  name,  and  in  fact  everything  which  related  to  his 
former  life;  said  the  man  who  claimed  to  be  his  father 
was  not  his  father ;  but  was  unable  to  give  any  clue  by 
which  to  ascertain  where  or  to  whom  he  belonged. 
The  authorities  of  Chester  refused  to  return  the  boy  to 
the  man  in  whose  charge  he  had  been  found,  and  an 
application  was  made  to  the  court  by  one  of  the  citizens 
to  prevent  him  from  being  taken  away,  and  to  have  a 


2/2  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

guardian  appointed  for  him.  After  it  was  decided  that 
the  child  was  not  our  Charley,  a  gentleman  wrote  to 
the  chief  of  police  of  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  an  account  of 
the  little  boy  in  Chester,  who  was  supposed  by  those 
who  had  seen  him  to  be  Charley  Ross,  and  also  gave 
a  description  of  the  child,  which  letter  was  published  in 
the  papers  of  that  city.  A  gentleman  of  St.  Louis,  Mr. 
Henry  Lachmueller,  read  the  account  as  published,  and 
recognized  some  points  in  the  description  that  led  him 
to  believe  that  the  child  might  be  his  own  son,  who  had 
mysteriously  disappeared  two  and  a  half  years  before. 
Obtaining  a  fuller  description,  he  proceeded  to  Chester 
to  remove  all  doubt.  What  was  his  joy  on  seeing  the 
child  to  find  his  hopes  realized,  and  his  long- lost  son 
found  at  last.  Although  the  child  had  forgotten  every- 
thing relating  to  his  family,  yet  as  soon  as  he  saw  his 
father  he  recognized  him.  Mr.  Lachmueller  returned  to 
St.  Louis,  and  procured  from  the  Governor  of  the  State 
and  a  Judge  in  St.  Louis  satisfactory  letters  that  he  was 
a  responsible  person.  In  company  with  his  wife  he 
returned  to  Chester,  and  got  possession  of  their  child, 
whom  they  had  long  given  up  for  lost — the  authori- 
ties being  satisfied  that  he  had  been  stolen  by  the  two 
vagabonds  who  had  brought  him  to  the  place.  Mr. 
Lachmueller  gives  the  following  account  of  the  way  in 
which  the  child  was  stolen.  He  was  residing  in  St 
Louis,  engaged  in  the  business  of  quarrying  stone,  and 
in  July,  1872,  he  and  his  men  were  engaged  at  their 
work  at  a  distance  from  his  residence;  his  children  car- 
ried the  men's  dinners  to  them  every  day.  On  the  3d 
of  July  several  of  the  children  proceeded  from  the  house 
with   baskets  of  provision  for  the  quarrymen,  and  on 


«     t    t  i  t    >    1    i 
«•      *     >    >       > 


•  »  »      » 
•    •     • 

*  •  »  *  . » 


Henry  Lachmueller,  found  in  Illinois. 


u  (v  I  V 
0/;l  If  I. 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  273 

their  way  back  stopped  at  a  grocery,  where  they  were 
acquainted.  One  of  the  boys,  Henry,  five  years  old, 
took  off  his  slioes,  and  playfully  ran  back  in  the  yard; 
as  he  did  not  return  search  was  made  for  him,  but  he 
could  not  be  found.  While  the  parties  were  searching 
for  him  two  bad-looking  men  informed  them  that  it  was 
useless  for  them  to  hunt  for  the  boy,  as  they  had  seen 
him  fall  into  the  river  and  drown.  Mr.  Lachmueller, 
believing  the  statement  of  the  men,  caused  the  river  to 
be  dragged,  in  the  hope  of  finding  the  body  of  his  child. 
While  thus  engaged  he  learned  from  some  persons 
in  the  vicinity  that  they  had  seen  two  men  cross  the 
river  in  a  boat,  with  a  little  boy  answering  the  descrip- 
tion of  Henry.  Mr.  Lachmueller,  on  being  satisfied 
that  the  boy  was  stolen,  declared  he  would  make  it  the 
business  of  his  life  to  find  his  child,  and  would  do  no 
more  work  until  success  crowned  his  efforts.  During 
the  time  he  was  searching  for  his  son,  he  heard  of  the 
abduction  of  my  son,  and  being  struck  with  the  coinci- 
dence, persevered  in  the  search,  thinking  he  might  find 
either  Charley  cr  his  own  son.  He  spared  no  expense, 
but  advertised  in  the  newspapers  of  the  United  States, 
Canada,  and  Europe;  and  whenever  he  heard  of  a  boy 
being  found  he  proceeded  at  once  to  the  place,  only  to 
be  disappointed.  He  traveled  through  the  Southern 
and  Eastern  States,  and  visited  several  European  coun 
tries,  but  could  hear  no  tidings  of  his  son,  until  at  last 
the  report  reached  him  of  the  child  at  Chester,  Illinois, 
thought  to  be  our  little  boy,  and  who  really  proved  to 
be  his  own  lost  Henry 

On  the  return  to  St.  Louis  of  the  father  and  mother 
with  their  son,  great  was  the  rejoicing  of  the  friends  and 


274  CHAKLKV    •  '^~- 

neighbors.  The  children  in  the  vicinity  of  their  dwelling 
were  wild  with  joy;  hundreds  crowded  in  and  around 
the  house,  and  persuaded  the  Httle  returned  hero  to  re- 
late his  story  over  and  over  again,  until  all  knew  it  by 
heart.  Thus  the  interest  which  was  awakened  in  the 
search  for  our  little  boy  resulted  in  the  restoring  of 
Mr.  Lachmueller's  child,  who  had  been  absent  two  and 
a  half  years,  and  had  been  trained  to  be  a  beggar,  wan- 
dering over  the  country  in  company  with  vagabonds, 
who  forced  the  child  to  obtain  money  that  they  might 
indulge  in  their  lazy  and  vicious  habits.  A  picture  of 
little  Henry  Lachmueller,  as  he  appeared  when  he  was 
rescued  by  the  citizens  uf  Chester,  Illinois,  from  the 
villains  who  had  stolen  him.  is  given  to  illustrate*  the 
manner  in  which  his  abductors  disfigured  him. 

Another  instance  in  which  a  child  was  restored  to 
his  proper  guardian  occurred  in  New  York  State.  A 
letter  was  received  by  the  Mayor  of  Philadelphia  from 
a  person  residing  in  one  of  the  counties  of  that  State, 
bordering  on  the  Hudson  river,  which,  like  many 
others,  claimed  positive  knowledge  of  "the  whereabouts 
of  Charley  Ross,"  and  asked  that  some  one  who  knew 
the  child  be  sent  to  the  place.  Upon  receipt  of  this 
letter  the  following  dispatch  was  sent  from  this  city: 

Letter  received.  Ple;ise  give  me  the  grounds  for  your  belief.  An- 
swer. W.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor. 

To  this  telegram  no  answer  was  received ;  but  sev- 
eral days  after  the  following  telegram  came  to  hand : 

Wm.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor,  Philadelphia.— A  woman  is  her;  going 
to  take  him  away.     What  must  I  do  ? 

To  which  reply  was  made  : 

See  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  and  your  District  Attorney  Be  guided  by 
their  advice.     Telegraph  results.  W.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor. 


LOST    CHILDREN    RESTORED.  2/5 

In  answer  to  this  the  following  was  received: 
W.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor. — Send  detective  at  once.     Answer. 
To  this  was  replied: 

An  officer  will  leave  for  your  city  on  the  midnight  train. 

W.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor. 

Captain  Heins  then  telegraphed  to  Superintendent 
Walling  in  New  York: 

A  gentleman  in  professes  to  have  important  information  as  to 

the  ^'hereabouts  of  Charley  Ross.  Has  been  in  correspondence  with 
the  Mayor  of  this  city.  Send  an  officer  there  by  the  early  train  to-mor- 
row morning.     Let  him  say  he  has  been  sent  by  Mayor  Stokley. 

After  the  lapse  of  a  few  days  the  following  letter  was 
received  from  Superintendent  Walling : 

Your  telegram  was  received.     I  sent  an  officer  forthwith  to to 

examine  the  child  supposed  to  be  Charley  Ross.  He  was  a  boy  about 
seven  years  of  age,  and  had  been  stolen  from  his  father  by  the  mother 

on  October  20th,  1872,  and  placed  in  care  of until  July  7th,  1873, 

when  he  was  transferred  to  another  person.  The  father  hearing  of  the 
child  has  claimed  him  and  taken  him  away.  The  boy,  in  consequence 
of  a  domestic  difficulty  or  quarrel,  had  been  secretly  taken  away  from  his 
father  by  his  mother,  and  transferred  to  different  persons,  in  different 
places,  thus  eluding  every  effort  of  the  father  to  find  him,  until  he  heard 
that  the  child  was  supposed  to  be  Charley  Ross,  when  he  went  to  the 
place  and  forthwith  recovered  his  son. 

As  an  indication  of  the  vigilance  of  the  people,  even 
in  the  far  distant  states,  the  following  instance  is  re- 
lated : 

During  the  early  part  of  December,  1874,  a  strange 
woman  appeared  in  Black  River  Falls,  Wisconsin,  with 
a  child  described  as  about  four  years  old,  and  having 
light  hair — said  to  be  a  perfect  likeness  of  the  photo- 
graph of  Charley  Ross,  in  possession  of  the  sheriff  of 
the  county.  The  woman  kept  herself  closely  veiled, 
and  gave  her  name  as  Lewis,  which  was  found  not  to  be 


276  CHAR  LEV   ROSS. 

correct.  She  said  she  was  going  to  visit  her  father,  who 
was  ill  of  typhoid  fever,  and,  for  fear  the  child  might 
take  the  disease,  desired  to  leave  him  until  she  re- 
turned. Her  actions  were,  however,  sufficiently  strange 
to  arouse  suspicion  among  the  people  of  the  town. 
After  leaving  the  child,  she  returned  to  the  place  where 
she  had  left  him,  but  they  did  not  recognize  her,  as  she 
was  disguised.  The  people  then  concluded  the  child 
must  be  the  long-lost  Charley  Ross.  The  woman  was 
traced  to  her  father's  hbuse  about  twelve  miles  distant, 
but  her  parents  were  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  she  had 
brought  a  child  to  Black  River  Falls.  She  was  arrested, 
but  refused  to  say  anything,  except  that  the  child  did 
not  belong  to  her.  Communications  were  at  once  be- 
gun with  me  about  the  matter,  and  also  with  the  Pinker- 
ton  agency  in  Chicago.  A  picture  with  a  full  descrip- 
tion of  the  child  was  requested  to  be  sent  to  me.  In  a 
short  time  the  following  letter  enclosing  a  photograph 
came  to  hand: 

Black  River  Falls,  Wisconsin,  January  6th,  187s. 
Mr.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — Your  favor  of  13th  ult.  came  to  hand  to-day. 
I  would  say  that  an  effort  has  been  made  to  get  a  photograph  of  the 
child  ;  but  the  artist  was  not  skilled  and  the  child  was  very  uneasy,  and 
they  failed  to  get  a  correct  likeness.  The  child  has  been  removed  into 
the  country  about  twelve  miles  from  this  place.  One  of  Pinkerton's 
detectives  was  here  to-day  and  has  gone  to  see  him.  Should  he  prove 
to  be  your  Charley,  you  will  hear  from  me  by  telegraph. 

Respectfully  yours,  G.  W.  Baillet. 

The  description  sent  to  me  represents  the 'child  as 
having  blue  eyes,  and  the  picture  bore  no  resemblance 
to  our  little  boy.  This  case  has  been  selected  from  a 
large  number  to  show  that  whenever  strangers,  whose 
actions  were  m  the  least  degree  suspicious,  came  into 


I 


LOST   CHILDREN    RESTORED.  27/ 

any  of  the  villages  throughout  the  country  with  a  small 
child,  they  were  closely  watched ;  and  although  many 
times  persons  influenced  by  an  excited  imagination 
were  mistaken  in  their  judgments,  yet  they  evinced  an 
earnest  desire  to  aid  us  in  recovering  Charley.  As 
before  stated,  the  feeling  in  this  exciting  case  has  not 
been  confined  to  our  own  country.  I  will  now  intro- 
duce a  very  interesting  correspondence  which  comes 
from  Europe. 

WuRZBURG,  Bavaria,  February  14,  ihjs- 
Mr.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — As  a  stranger,  permit  me  to  address  you. 
I  have  seen  it  announced  in  the  papers  that  your  child  was  lost,  and  I 
believe,  from  the  description  I  have  seen  of  him,  that  I  know  where 
he  is  and  who  has  him.  The  child  I  saw  answers  the  description 
exactly ;  he  is  four  to  four  and  one-half  years  old ;  has  half-brown  eyes, 
flaxen  hair,  and  can  speak  several  languages.  I  am  acquainted  with  the 
American  who  has  him,  and  can,  if  you  telegraph  me  in  return,  imme- 
diately inquire  more  minutely  into  the  matter.  As  the  man  intends 
leaving  shortly,  it  would  be  best  to  act  promptly.  Better  still  if  you 
would  come  in  person;  but  telegraph  without  delay,  as  he  is  surely  your 
Charley,  for  the  American  has  as  much  as  told  me  so. 
I  hope  to  hear  from  you  soon, 

Edward  Mossner, 
Machine  Foreman,  with  C.  Thaler,  in  Wurzburg,  Bavaria. 
P.  S. — I  should  like  to  have  telegraphed  as  it  is  of  importance ;  but  it 
is  not  advisable ;  for  if  he  should  learn  of  the  same,  he  has  expressed 
himself  that  he  would  shoot  himself  and  the  child,  if  he  should  ever  be 
compelled  to  give  him  up.  He  takes  good  care  of  him,  and  loves  him 
as  well  as  his  life.  That  he  is  your  child  is  not  susceptible  of  the 
slightest  doubt,  for  he  personally  informed  me  that  the  child  was  brought 
to  his  house  ^d  no  one  showed  himself  afterwards.  But  even  if  no  one 
inquired  for  him,  is  it  nott<6Uspicious  that  he  should  have  fled  from 
America  to  Germany  ?  It  is  urgent  that  you  act  at  once,  as  he  intends  to 
depart ;  but  I  will  take  pains  not  to  lose  trace  of  him.  I  rely  upon 
your  judgment  whether  it  would  not  be  advisable  to  enter  legal  proceed- 
ings by  telegraph  to  keep  the  child. 

Yours,  E.  Mossner. 


2/8  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

The  above  letter  is  written  in  German,  and,  as  will 
be  observed,  the  writer  speaks  most  positively  that 
the  child  he  saw  was  our  Charley.  But  I  had  re- 
ceived so  many  letters,  etc.,  stating  the  same  thing,  that 
I  determined  to  try  by  means  of  correspondence  to  test 
if  possible  the  correctness  of  my  correspondent's  con- 
clusions. By  inquiring  I  obtained  the  name  and  resi- 
dence of  the  United  States  Consul  living  nearest  to 
Wurzburg.  To  him  was  sent  the  following  letter  by 
the  Mayor  of  this  city: 

Philadelphia,  March  4th,  187 s- 
Mr.  James  W.  Wii^on,  U.  S.  Consul,  Nuremberg,  Germany. — 
Dear  Sir  : — A  letter  has  been  received  by  Mr.  Christian  K.  Ross,  of 
this  city,  from  Edward  Mossner,  Machine  Foreman,  with  C.  Thaler,  in 
Wurzburg,  Bavaria,  stating  that  he  (Mossner)  believes  that  Mr.  Ross's 
little  son  Charley,  who  was  abducted  from  his  home,  July  i,  1874,  is 
in  that  city  with  an  American. 

The  letter  Mossner  writes  is  very  indefinite ;  yet  there  is  sufficient  in 
it  to  warrant  me  to  examine  into  the  matter.  Will  you  plexse  see  Mr. 
Mossner,  who  will  point  out  the  child  to  you,  and  by  comparing  the 
enclosed  photograph  and  investigating  the  matter,  you  may  be  able  to 
determine  whether  he  is  Mr.  Ross's  child.  Your  early  attention  will 
oblige.  Respectfully  yours, 

W.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor, 

To  this  the  following  reply  was  received : 

U.  S.  Consulate,  Nuremberg,  March  23,  i8yS' 

To  His  Honor,  Mr.  Wm.  S.  Stokley,  Mayor  of  Philadelphia. 
— Dear  Sir  : — Your  communication  of  the  4th  inst.  and  circular  relative 
to  the  abducted  boy,  Charley  Ross,  was  duly  received  on  the  21st 
inst.  I  at  once  called  on  my  Vice  Consul,  Mr.  Moritt  Geiershofer, 
who,  by  the  way,  is  a  patriotic  citizen  of  Philadelphia,  and  told  him  I 
had  a  chance  for  him  to  show  his  humanity  and  good  feeling  for  old 
Philadelphia ;  and  that  I  wanted  him  to  go  with  me  to  Wurzburg  and 
probe  the  matter  to  the  bottom.  He  was  keenly  anxious  to  do  his  mite 
for  Philadelphia  and  her  distinguished  citizen,  Mr.  Ross.  So  at  ten 
o'clock  the  next  morning  we  were  on  our  way  to  Wurzburg,  where  we 


LOST    CHILDREN    RESTORED.  279 

arrived  at  1 1  A.  M.  Our  first  step  was  to  hunt  up  the  man,  E  Mossner. 
We  found  him  sick  at  his  house,  out  in  the  suburbs  of  the  city.  We 
found  his  whole  family,  consisting  of  wife,  one  son  and  three  daughters, 
all  grown,  and  quite  excited,  and  a  little  too  positive  that  the  boy  in 
question  was  none  other  than  Charley  Ross.  They  had  received  Mr. 
Ross's  letter,  circular,  etc.,  etc.  We  thoroughly  examined  the  family, 
and  left  them  with  the  impression  that  we  were  on  the  right  track.  And 
I  can  assure  you  we  both  felt  that  it  woidd  be  the  happiest  day  of  our 
lives,  if  we  could  be  able  to  send  you  a  telegram  to  the  effect  that  we 
had  secured  the  long-lost  child.  But,  like  all  others  in  this  case,  we 
were  doomed  to  disappointment. 

We  proceeded  to  the  Burgomaster  (Mayor)  and  the  Commissioner  of 
Police.  They  both,  at  once,  pronounced  the  whole  thing  a  swindle  on 
the  part  of  the  Mossner  family.  They  said  that  their  heads  were  turned 
at  the  prospect  of  making  a  penny.  The  Commissioner  of  Police  pro- 
duced the  proceedings  in  case  of  Kuderman  and  the  American  child — 
from  which  it  appeared  that  the  man  Kuderman  arrived  in  Hamburg, 
from  San  Francisco,  with  the  child,  as  early  as  May,  1874.  He  (Kuder- 
man) swore  that  the  child  was  illegitimate,  and  had  been  left  at  his  house 
by  a  Bavarian  servant  girl — that  he  had  brought  the  child  over  to  the 
gi-andparents,  who  reside  in  Kempton,  Bavaria;  that  they  refused  to 
receive  it;  that  he  then  came  to  Wurzburg;  and  subsequently  the  sisters 
of  the  mother  of  the  child  came  and  demanded  it,  and  on  his  refusing,  a 
suit  was  brought  in  court,  where  the  above  facts  were  developed,  and 
the  man  was  allowed  to  retain  the  child.  Subsequently,  some  six  months 
ago,  some  one,  thinking  he  might  be  the  abductor  of  Charley  Ross, 
had  him  arrested  with  the  child  and  examined.  He  was  again  dis- 
charged, it  being  satisfactorily  proven  that  the  child  could  not  be 
Charley  Ross,  who  was  lost  July  ist,  1874. 

When  we  were  satisfied  from  the  legal  proceedings  that  the  boy  could 
not  be  Mr.  Ross's  child,  still  we  requested  that  the  man  and  child  be 
brought  before  us  to  be  examined  by  us  separately.  This  was  done. 
This  boy  is  a  beautiful  child  of  about  four  years  of  age,  and  in  many 
respects  resembled  the  description  of  the  Ross  boy.  But  he  had  no 
;'  cowlick,"  no  "  dimples,"  and  his  eyes  are  very  beautiful  bright  blue — 
so  distinctly  blue  you  would  notice  it  across  the  room.  I  took  him  in 
my  lap  and  asked  him  if  his  name  was  not  Charley;  he  replied  "  No; 
my  name  is  Theodore  Ehrman."  I  asked  him  his  father's  name;  he 
replied,  "Kuderman."  I  asked  him  if  he  was  born  in  Philadelphia ;  be 
replied  « in  San  Francisco."     I  then  told  him  I  had  a  picture  for  him. 


280  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

and  asked  him  if  he  could  tell  who  it  was.  He  replied  in  German. 
Das  ist  fin  sehr  schones  Madchen  (that  is  a  very  handsome  little  girl). 
He  seemed  to  take  the  greatest  fancy  for  his  little  girl,  and  did  not  like 
to  part  with  it.  His  mouth  and  ears  were  apparently  smaller  than  those 
of  the  photograph.  This  boy  in  Wurzburg  is  a  very  precocious  and 
beautiful  child. 

The  man  Kuderman  seemed  to  be  a  very  shrewd  but  honest  man,  tell- 
ing a  straightforward  story,  etc.  But  there  seemed  to  be  some  mystery 
in  this  case.  He  is  believed  to  be  receiving  money  from  some  source 
for  the  support  of  himself,  wife  and  child.  The  child  is  kept  clean  and 
dressed  very  nicely.  While  we  were  satisfied  that  the  boy  here  is  not 
the  one  we  wanted,  we  were  also  of  the  opinion  that  his  was  some  unde- 
veloi>ed,  hidden  history.  He  seems  to  be  an  extraordinarily  fine  child, 
and  is  evidently  of  a  higher  order  of  parentage  than  reported  by  the 
man  Kuderman. 

Of  course  we  were  profoundly  disappointed,  though  it  was  a  satisfac- 
tion that  an  opportunity  had  been  given  us  of  doing  our  mite  in  this 
most  extraordinary  case. 

In  closing,  I  beg  you  to  give  our  heartfelt  sympathy  to  the  afflicted 
parents  of  the  lost  child.     With  much  respect,  I  am,  sir, 
Your  obedient  servant, 

James  M.  W^ii^on,  U.  S.  Consul, 

On  receipt  of  this  letter  from  Mr.  Wilson,  I  imme- 
diately wrote  to  him,  th£mking  him  for  the  great  interest 
he  and  his  vice-consul  had  taken,^nd  for  the  very  satis- 
factory and  thorough  manner  in  which  they  had  inves- 
tigated the  case  of  the  Wurzburg  child,  at  the  same  time 
saying  that  the  child  could  not  possibly  be  my  little 
boy,  as  this  one  has  blue  eyes,  while  my  son's  are  of  a 
decided  broivn  or  Jiazel.  My  letter  in  reply  to  Mr.  Wil- 
son's failed  to  reach  him,  and  November  8th,  1875,  he 
wrote  a  second  time  to  the  Mayor,  a  few  extracts  from 
which  will  still  further  show  the  great  interest  he  took 
to  fully  satisfy  himself  and  us  about  the  child  who  had 
been  in  W^urzburg. 

He  says  : 


0 

1  .          . 

i                    1 

1' .  ^^^^^^^mfj/ 

1 

( 

1 

\ 

» 

% 

,    J »  J    *    J    J 

WuRZBKRG  Child,  Traced  ky  the'  Ci'iiTiirr  "STAtEs  ^oivsm.." 


LOST   CHILDREN    RESTORED.  28 1 

While,  as  mentioned  in  my  letter  of  25th.  of  March,  the  facts  seemed 
to  be  against  the  little  boy  found  by  me  being  Charley  Ross,  I  have 
not  been  able  to  divest  myself  of  the  belief  that  he  might  turn  out  to  be 
the  right  child  after  all.  So  I  addressed  a  note  to  a  German  friend  of 
mine  living  near  the  man  Kuderman,  and  he  promptly  replied  :  "  The 
birds  have  flown ;  they  left  on  the  29th  of  April,  leaving  suddenly  with- 
out consulting  any  one,  and  leaving  unexpired  rent,  which  had  been  paid 
in  advance."  He  further  wrote :  "  A  woman  living  next  door  told  me 
that  a  few  days  after  their  departure,  a  young  American  called  and 
seemed  much  excited  to  find  these  people  had  left,"  etc.,  etc.  My  friend 
said  these  people  went  to  Frankfort  on  the  Main.  Mr.  Wilson  contin- 
ues by  saying  that  he  at  once  wrote  to  our  Consul-General  at  Frankfort, 
to  find  out  if  such  people  were  in  or  had  been  in  Frankfort.  The  Police 
authorities  informed  the  Consul  that  they  were  not  and  had  not  been 
there.  Subsequently  I  addressed  myself  to  the  Mayor  and  Chief  of 
Police  of  Wurzburg,  and  requested  them,  if  possible,  to  trace  the  people, 
since  my  suspicious  had  been  strengthened  that  this  boy  was  the 
abducted  boy,  Charley  Ross.  In  about  three  weeks  the  Mayor  wrote 
me  that  the  man,  woman  and  child  had  been  traced  to  the  little  village 
of  Bornheim,  near  Frankfort.  I  proceeded  to  Frankfort,  and  taking  Mr. 
Webster,  our  Consul-General,  we  went  to  Bornheim  and  had  an  inter- 
view with  the  Burgomaster  and  his  one  policeman.  The  policeman  had 
a  sister  living  in  the  same  house.  To  be  brief,  I  told  the  Burgomaster  I 
must  have  a  photograph  of  that  child,  without  exciting  the  suspicion  of 
the  people  in  whose  possession  it  was.  We  sent  for  a  photographer  and 
the  policeman  took  him  to  the  house,  ostensibly  to  have  the  picture  of  his 
sister's  little  boy  taken,  and  by  a  little  strategy  they  succeeded  in  getting 
the  woman  to  let  the  child  be  taken.  It  worked  like  a  chanxi.  The 
artist,  while  taking  the  other  child,  told  the  woman  having  charge  of  my 
Charley,  that  he  admired  her  little  son,  and  would  take  his  picture  and 
make  her  a  present  of  it.  She  consented  to  his  taking  one  for  her  only, 
he,  of  course,  keeping  the  negative.  It  gives  me  pleasure  to  be  able  to 
send  the  copies  herewith.  If  it  is  Mr.  Ross's  child,  he  will  know  it, 
doubtless;  and  if  the  right  child  beyond  peradventure,  let  him  telegraph 
to  me  direct,  and  I  will  undertake  to  take  him  to  Philadelphia,  etc.,  etc, 
God  knows  I  hope  for  the  parents'  sake  it  may  turn  out  to  be  the  right 
child,  etc.  James  M.  Wilson,  U.  S.  Consul. 

Again  Mr.  Wilson  writes  December  lO,  1875,  refer- 
ring to  his  former  letters  to  the  Mayor,  and  says : 


282  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

Not  having  heard  a  word  from  any  source,  and  full  time  having 
elapsed,  I  think  it  possible  that  my  letters  have  miscarried  or  fallen  into 
wrong  hands;  therefore,  I  will  send  this  to  your  personal  address  and 
enclose  photograph  of  my  little  waif.  In  my  last  letter  to  the  Mayor  I 
gave  full  particulars  of  the  present  whereabouts  of  the  child.  However, 
if  my  letter  was  duly  received,  I  am  not  surprised  that  it  has  not  been 
answered,  for  I  am  aware  it  is  but  among  many  hundred  hope-deferring 
letters  you  have  received — letters  so  full  of  faith  on  the  part  of  the 
authors  and  yet  destined  to  give  additional  sorrow  to  your  already  over- 
burdened heart. 

While  I  have  almost  abandoned  hope,  so  far  as  the  child  here  is  con- 
cerned, I  feel  it  to  be  my  duty  to  send  you  this  letter  and  photograph. 
Please  inform  me,  by  return  mail,  if  this  is  not  your  child,  and  return  to 
me  the  photograph,  as  1  wish  to  retain  it  as  a  svuvciiir  of  my  labors  in 
the  interests  of  a  common  humanity,  etc,  etc.  1  have  the  honor  to  be, 
dear  sir,  with  deep  sympathy, 

Your  obedient  servant. 

Signed,  James  M.  Wilson,  U.  S.  Consul. 

On  the  23d  of  November  I  replied  to  the  letter 
which  the  Mayor  received  as  follows : 

Philadelphia,  Narvanber  2j,  1873. 

James  M.  Wilson,  Esq.,  U.  S.  Consui.,  Nurrmukrg,  Germany. — 
Dear  Sir  : — His  Honor,  Mayor  Stokley,  desires  me  to  acknowledge  the 
receipt  of  your  favor  of  the  8th  inst.,  with  enclosures  of  photographs. 

I  take  pleasure  in  doing  so,  not  that  the  child  which  you  have  so 
persistently  followed  up  is  my  little  Charley,  but  because  you  have 
taken  so  great  interest  as  to  retrace  the  Wurzburg  child,,  so  as  to  be  fully 
assured  that  no  mistake  had  been  made. 

I  replied  to  yours  of  March  25th,  saying  that  the  Wurzburg  child  could 
not  be  mine;  he  having  blue  eyes,  while  my  little  boy's  are  brmvn  or 
hnzfl.  The  pictures  just  received  confirm  me  that  he  is  not  Charley. 
I  am  glad,  however,  to  have  the  picture,  as  that  settles  the  matter  beyond 
a  doubt. 

As  yet  I  am  entirely  in  the  dark  as  to  what  has  become  of  the  child ; 
but  since  the  publication  of  the  letters  I  received  from  one  of  the  abduc- 
tors, a  renewed  impetus  has  been  given  the  search ;  and  I  am  daily  in 
receipt  of  so  many  letters,  reporting  children  astray  or  in  bad  hands,  that 
I  trust  I  shall  yet  be  able  to  come  across  the  right  one,  etc. 

The  suspense  and  anxiety  are  terrible ;  but  one  comfort  we  have — that  is. 


LOST    CHILDREN    RESTORED.  283 

we  have  the  universal  sympathy  of  the  civilized  world,  particularly  since 
the  true  and  only  version  of  the  whole  matter  is  understood — kidnapping 
of  the  child  for  a  ransom. 

I  judge  from  what  you  write  that  you  expect  to  visit  your  native  land 
during  our  Centennial  year.  If  so,  I  should  be  very  glad  to  call  on  you, 
and  thank  you  in  person  for  your  kindness  and  interest.  In  the  mean 
time  accept  my  thanks.         I  am  most  respectfully  yours, 

Christian  K.  Ross. 

On  the  same  date  as  the  last  letter,  Mr.  Wilson  writes 
again : 

U.  S.  Consulate,  Nuremberg,  Germany,  December  10,  iSy^, 
Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — After  my  letter  of  this  A.  M.  was 
mailed,  your  esteemed  letter  of  the  23d  ult.  came  to  hand.  I  cannot 
honestly  say  that  I  am  pleased  to  learn  definitely  that  this  handsome  and 
bright  little  fellow  is  not  your  long-lost  Charley;  for  I  had  fondly 
hoped  that  he  would  prove  to  be  the  right  child,  and  that  I  might 
become  instrumental,  under  Providence,  in  restoring  that  child  to  its 
heart-stricken  parents.  But  it  seems  that  it  is  not  to  be.  In  the  mean- 
time I  am  pleased  to  see  that  you  still  have  faith  and  hope,  which 
"  springs  eternal  in  the  human  breast."  You  say,  "  I  replied  to  yours 
of  March  25th,  saying  that  the  Wurzburg  child  could  not  be  mine,  etc., 
etc."  That  letter  I  never  received.  In  the  meantime  there  can  be  no 
harm  in  my  still  having  a  grain  of  faith  left  that  this  child  here  may 
eventually  turn  out  to  be  the  right  one  after  all.  I  propose  to  keep  him 
within  tracing  distance  for  a  little  time  longer,  etc.,  etc.  With  lively 
sympathy,  I  am,  dear  sir,  yours, 

James  M.  Wilson,  U.  S.  Consul. 

I  have  found  pleasure  in  giving  this  case  so  large  a 
space  in  this  history,  partly  on  account  of  the  great  de- 
gree of  interest  manifested,  and  the  prompt  and  cheer- 
ful service  rendered  by  Mr.  Wilson,  but  more  especially 
because  of  the  generous  sympathy  and  the  uniform  spirit 
of  kindness  which  breathes  forth  in  these  letters.  It  is 
truly  encouraging  to  .find  in  a  stranger  such  kind  words 
and  acts,  which  tend  to  alleviate  suffering  and  give  grace 
and  dignity  to  our  common  manhood.     Had  the  child 


284  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

been  our  Charley,  gladly  would  he  have  crossed  the 
o'cean  with  the  prize.  Of  this  I  am  well  convinced,  for 
no  one  could  write  so  touchingly  who  would  not  have 
claimed  and  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  restoring  the  long- 
lost  child  to  the  arms  of  his  affectionate  parents. 

The  picture  of  the  little  boy  who  was  so  persistently 
followed  up  I  have  had  copied.  The  only  name  by 
which  he  is  known  to  us  is  that  of  the  "  Wurzburg  child." 

While  so  many  persons  were  truly  enlisted  to  aid  in 
discovering  the  child,  the  vultures  of  society,  taking  ad- 
vantage of  the  excitement  that  prevailed,  endeavored  to 
prey  on  us  by  concocting  different  schemes  to  extort 
money.  A  few  notable  instances  will  be  related,  to  show 
the  heartlessness  of  the  wretches  who  undertook  to  ex- 
cite false  hopes,  with  the  view  of  turning  their  infamous 
lies  to  profitable  account,  by  asserting  that  they  were 
possessed  of  information  as  to  where  Charley  was  con- 
cealed. The  first  case  is  that  of  a  man  who  desired  to 
procure  a  reward  in  advance  for  information  which  he 
professed  to  have.     The  correspondence  is  as  follows: 

[A.] 

St.  Louis,  Dec.  ^j,  1874. — Mr.  Ross — Dear  Sir: — You  offer  a 
reward  for  information  that  will  lead  to  the  recovery  of  Charley  Ross. 
I  know  where  he  is,  and  will  tell  you.  I  would  have  told  you  before, 
but  was  afraid  to;  but  since  Douglass  is  dead  I  can  tell  you  without  fear. 
Last  September  I  became  acquainted  accidentally  with  Joe  Douglass  and 
Bill  Morris  or  Mosier  (he  called  himself  Morris  then),  and  found  out 
that  they  had  Charley  Ross  hidden  away  ;  and  they  threatened  to  kill  me 
if  I  betrayed  them,  but  promised  to  pay  me  well  to  keep  quiet.  Now 
if  you  will  give  me  $500  I  will  promise  to  deliver  Charley  into  your 
hands  within  three  days  from  the  time  I  receive  the  money ;  or  if  you 
doubt  me  or  my  ability  to  do  so,  I  will  go  to  Philadelphia,  and  take  you 
to  the  place  where  he  is  now  hidden,  if  you  will  send  me  money  enough 
to  pay  my  expenses  and  take  me  there,  say  about  one  hundred  dollars ; 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  285 

then  after  you  get  the  boy  you  can  pay  the  rest.  I  will  pledge  you  my 
life  that  I  can  do  this,  and  would  have  done  so  before,  only  I  was  in  fear 
of  my  life,  and  it  was  only  yesterday  that  I  learned  that  Douglass  was 
dead.  If  you  will  send  the  money,  I  will  do  all  that  I  have  promised. 
Address  James  Cannon,  care  W.  S.  Wylie,  No.  1743  North  Ninth  street, 
St.  Louis,  Mo. 

P.  S.  I  am  living  six  miles  in  the  country,  and  Mr.  Wylie  is  a  friend, 
but  knows  nothing  about  this.  If  you  send  money  by  registered  letter 
or  money  order,  send  it  in  Mr.  Wylie's  name.  James  Cannon. 

A  reply  was  forwarded  to  this  letter,  saying  that,  as 
he  was  a  stranger,  before  any  money  could  be  advanced 
for  the  information  which  he  professed  to  have,  we  de- 
sired to  have  some  responsible  reference  as  to  who  he 
was,  and  if  he  proved  to  be  a  proper  person  there 
would  be  no  trouble  about  his  getting  the  money  he 
wanted.     To  which  the  following  answer  was  received : 

[B.] 

St.  Louis,  Jan.  4,  iSjS- — Mr.  Ross — Dear  Sir: — Yours  received. 
My  friend,  Mr.  Wylie,  handed  me  your  letter  this  morning.  I  am  veiy 
sorry  that  you  could  not  place  confidence  enough  in  me  to  accept  my  offer. 
Now,  I  will  make  another  one.  You  want  me  to  furnish  you  reference. 
That  I  cannot  do.  I  am  a  poor  man,  a  perfect  stranger  here,  and  un- 
known to  any  one  except  a  few  as  poor  and  unknown  as  myself,  Mr. 
Wylie  being  the  only  man  whom  I  know.  If  I  could  give  you  reference 
I  would  do  so  willingly;  but  I  cannot.  So,  my  course  is  plain.  If  you 
will  not  accept  my  former  offer  I  cannot  go  to  Philadelphia,  for  the  sim- 
ple reason  that  I  have  no  money  to  take  me  there,  and  no  friends  from 
whom  I  could  borrow.  So,  if  you  are  not  willing  to  send  me  what  I 
asked,  I  will  have  to  try  and  obtain  some  work  until  I  can  earn  money 
enough  to  take  me  to  Philadelphia.  I  will  wait  ten  days  for  an  answer 
to  this ;  then  if  I  do  not  get  satisfactoiy  answer  I  shall  go  to  work  and  try 
and  earn  the  money.  I  have  in  my  possession  written  directions  where 
to  find  the  boy.  Copies  of  these  I  will  leave  in  charge  of  Mr.  Wylie,  so 
if  anything  should  happen  to  me  he  will  have  the  papers.  They  are 
written  in  cipher,  so  I  have  no  fear  of  trusting  him  with  them,  for  the 
secret  of  the  key  is  known  only  to  Douglass,  Morris  and  myself.  I  had  no 
hand  in  the  stealing  of  the  child.  I  became  acquainted  with  Douglass 
and  learned  the  secret,  and  to  save  myself  I  helped  to  remove  him  from 


286  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

the  place  where  he  was  then  hidden  to  the  place  where  he  is  now  con- 
cealed. These  papers  which  I  have  were  written  by  Douglass  to  enable 
me  to  find  the  boy  in  case  it  became  necessary  to  remove  him.  He  is 
still  in  the  place  where  he  was  in  November,  and  will  remain  there  vmtil 
the  party  who  h;\s  charge  of  him  is  ordered  to  produce  him.  He  is  in 
charge  of  an  old  deaf  negro  woman  who  can  neither  read  nor  write,  and 
who  never  heard  of  Charley  Ross,  and  is  in  such  a  place  that  no  one 
would  ever  think  of  looking  for  him  in  that  place;  I  will  tell  you  your  son 
is  well,  and  seems  to  be  contented.  It  is  in  my  power  to  restore  him  to 
you,  but  I  will  not  have  anything  to  do  with  a  second  party.  If  we  can 
come  to  no  satisfactory  agreement,  you  can  have  the  papers  containing 
the  explicit  directions  where  to  find  him  and  the  key  to  read  them  by, 
for  the  sum  mentioned  in  my  former  letter.  If  you  will  not  send  me 
money  enough  to  pay  my  way  to  Philadelphia,  you  can  appoint  some 
one  to  act  for  you,  and  I  will  do  the  same,  keeping  myself  in  the  back- 
ground, and  will  give  up  these  papers  (along  with  the  key),  >vhich  will 
enable  you  to  find  your  son  without  further  trouble.  Five  hundred  dol- 
lars is  a  small  matter  comixored  with  your  son;  but  with  all  due  respect 
for  your  feelings  as  a  father,  this  is  the  best  I  can  do.  Please  think  of 
this,  and  I  hope  you  will  accept  one  or  the  other  of  my  oflTers,  viz.,  either 
send  me  the  sum  I  named  and  I  will  go  to  Philadelphia,  or  appoint  some 
one  to  receive  the  papers  and  pay  for  them.  You  can  a<ldress  as  liefore, 
in  care  of  W.  S.  Wylie,  No.  1743  North  Ninth  street.  If  1  do  not  hear 
from  you  in  ten  days  I  will  do  as  I  mentioned  above,  go  to  work  till  I 
can  earn  money  enough  to  take  me  to  Philadelphia.  But  the  sooner  I 
get  money,  the  sooner  you  get  the  boy.  I  hope  it  will  be  to  your  interest 
to  accept  my  offer.  It  will  do  no  good  to  question  Mr.  Wylie,  for  he 
knows  nothing  about  this  affair,  and  will  not  unless  you  reject  my  offer; 
then  I  shall  give  him  the  papers  for  safe-keeping,  telling  him  at  the  same 
time  what  they  are,  without  giving  him  the  key  to  the  cipher.  Now,  my 
dear  sir,  you  can  act  as  you  deem  best ;  but  if  there  is  anything  like 
treacheiy  in  your  manner  of  dealing  with  me,  I  shall  keep  out  of  sight  and 
you  will  learn  no  more  from  me.  But  if  $500  is  no  object,  remember  that 
for  that  sum  you  can  find  your  son.  If  you  send  funds,  please  send  as 
directed  in  my  last.  Now,  hoping  soon  to  receive  a  favorable  reply,  I 
remain  very  truly  yours,  Ja.mes  Cannon. 

This  letter  on  its  receipt  was  regarded  as  a  scheme 
to  swindle,  and  both  letters  were  sent  to  a  friend  in  St. 
Louis,  with  a  request  that   he  would   have  the  matter 


LOST   CHILDREN    RESTORED.  28/ 

investigated  by  the  police  authorities  of  that  city.  Cap- 
tain O'Connor,  chief  of  detectives,  undertook  to  find 
Cannon,  and  after  some  trouble  he  secured  his  arrest, 
and  took  possession  of  all  documents  and  letters  found 
in  his  desk.  The  report  of  the  Captain  is  as  follows, 
also  the  letter  in  cipher  to  which  Cannon  refers  in  his 
second  letter  with  the  translation : 

Detective  Office,  Four  Courts,  Jan.  i8, 187 j. — Major  L.  Harri- 
gan,  Chief  of  Police: — Relative  to  letters  purporting  to  have  been  written 
by  one  James  Cannon  from  this  city  to  the  father  of  the  boy  Charley 
Ross,  at  Philadelphia,  which  letters  are  hereunto  annexed  and  marked 
respectively  A  and  B,  I  have  the  honor  to  report  as  follows : — On  Satur- 
day afternoon  last,  in  company  with  Detective  Tracy,  I  went  in  pursuit 
of  the  man  Camion.  After  some  trouble  we  succeeded  in  finding  the 
trail  of  the  man  Wylie.  Following  him  up,  we  located  him  on  a  small 
flat  boat  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  foot  of  Lebaume  street,  where  he  was 
living  with  a  man  named  Wilson,  both  of  whom  we  found  to  be  absent 
across  the  river.  I  directed  special  officer  Barney  Willow,  Fourth  Dis- 
trict, to  watch  the  boat,  arrest  both  men  and  secure  all  letters  found  with 
them.  At  eleven  P.  M.  Officer  Willow  arrested  both  men,  and  found  a 
large  number  of  letters  directed  to  W.  S.  Wylie  at  points  in  Arkansas 
and  Missouri.  In  a  desk  belonging  to  Wylie,  after  careful  search,  I 
found  the  directions  in  cipher  which  are  spoken  of  in  letter  marked  B. 
Calling  to  my  assistance  Officer  Williams,  of  the  Third  District,  an  ex- 
pert in  cipher-reading,  we  obtained  the  secret  of  the  mysterious  docu- 
ment, which  is  also  annexed  and  marked  C.  Its  translation  is  also  an- 
nexed and  marked  D.  By  comparing  the  writing  in  the  letters  A  and 
B  and  in  the  cipher  letter  with  the  ordinary  chirography  of  the  man 
Wylie,  but  little  doubt  can  exist  that  Cannon  and  Wylie  are  one  and  the 
same  person  ;  that  Wylie  is  the  inventor  and  engineer  of  the  whole  thing, 
which  is  nothing  less  than  an  outrageous  attempt  to  perpetrate  a  swindle 
upon  Mr.  Ross.  Very  respectfully, 

Dan.  O'Connor,  Chief  of  Detectives. 

[C] 

cipher  letter. 

Lgn  Sxg  ra  abme  jb  yrun  kmoo  keb  r  w  jmroonrvb  ywjln  an  Igxcpqb 

Knab  bx  vxdn  gry  r  anum  qxc  bquan  mr  &  nib  rxwa  ax  Igyb  gxe  Ijw 

owm  gw  Ij  anrb  Knlx  vua  wnlon  aajg  bx  &  noxdr  grv  xb  rw  Ijan  xv  jwg 


288  CHAKLEV    ROSS. 

jllrumb  bx  ca  en  ny  g  Kn  Scppwc  ro  Oxqxc  ernn  qzdn  bx  Iztu  cqy  &  pn 
XV  qw  Kcb  Xw  gx&n  uroii  dxwb  ojru  ca  j&vm  mxwh  uxan  Iqnan  m  r  & 
nl  brxwa  Ignw  qxr  nnj  dnJxin  K  xjh  px  bx  bqn  qnbnu  bgtn  bgn  Irbqb 
qjrvm  &  xym  Inah  Xv  lx|n  oxwax  rb.  wx  &  bg  bruw  qxc  Ixyn  bx  bqn 
G  &  enw  bxm  lym  bqn  G  &  &  nw  exjm  jwm  oxunxe  rb  ex&  jKxcb 
henucn  rwna  bc&w  wnrlx|nb  &  rpbb  x&  unob  brun  xxc  Ixyn  bx  bqn 
on&&  g  G  c  &  w  bx  bqn  unob  bqn  on  &  &  g  jwm  bnny  xw  cy  bqn  ab  & 
nyb  bnuw  qxc  yg  aa  vex  bxj  ma  bytn  bqn  bqr  &  m  Xun  jum  oxunxe  rb 
Xun  Vxvn  bnur  gxc  Qron  j  &  crumm  Ij  krw  Ijm  bqn  y  j  bg  Kg  bqn  Ij 
kum  rb  y  ny  ma  r  w  b  x  bqn  a  g  y  v  jum  eruw  bjtn  gxc  bx  bqn  gxcan 
eqn  &  n  bqn  X  xg  va  Kcb  v  w  wx  Ijan  j  &  n  qxc  bx  x  cw>'na  a  avcnbqnvp 
qj  y  n  i  v  a  bx  ca  bf^  n  w  qxc  new  mx  bqn  Knaqb  uxc  Gwerbq  bqn  Kx  g. 

K.  MXCPVJA. 
[D.] 
TRANSLATION  OF  CIPHER. 
The  boy  is  still  at  Pine  Bluff,  but  in  a  different  place.  We  thought 
best  to  move  him.  I  send  you  these  directions  so  that  you  can  find  him 
in  case  it  becomes  necessary  to  remove  him,  or  in  case  of  any  accident 
to  us.  We  may  be  jugged.  If  so,  you  will  have  to  lake  charge  of  him  ; 
but  on  your  life  don't  fail  us,  and  don't  lose  the»e  directions.  When  you 
leave  the  boat  go  to  the  hotel;  take  the  right-hand  road  west  of  the 
hotel ;  follow  it  north  till  you  come  to  the  Warren  road  ;  take  the  War- 
ren road  and  follow  it  for  about  twelve  miles;  turn  neither  right  nor 
left  till  you  come  to  the  ferry ;  turn  to  the  left  at  the  lerry,  and  keep  on 
the  straight  road  till  you  pass  two  roads,  take  the  third  one  and  follow  it 
one  mile  till  you  come  to  a  ruined  cabin ;  take  the  path  by  the  cabin,  it 
leads  into  the  swamp,  and  will  lake  you  lo  the  house  where  the  boy  is. 
But  in  no  case  are  you  to  go  unless  something  happens  to  us ;  then  you 
will  do  the  best  you  can  with  the  boy.  B.  Douglass,  P 

This  attempted  swindle  was  unsuccessful,  and  al- 
though the  scoundrel  was  in  the  power  of  the  authori- 
ties, having  obtained  no  money,  he  could  not  be  held, 
and  after  being  kept  in  prison  a  few  days,  was  dis- 
charged. 

Another  attempt  of  a  similar  kind  was  made;  but 
this  fellow  was  actuated  by  a  different  motive.  He  wrote 
the  following  letter : 


LOST   CHILDREN    RESTORED.  289 

New  York,  March  4,  187^' 
C.  K.  Ross,  Esq. — Dear  Sir: — Something  has  come  under  my  notice 
which  leads  me  to  believe  that  I  can  find  your  child,  provided  that  I  am 
given  the  means  and  authority  to  act.  /  am  a  seafaring  man.  I  trust 
to  your  honor  to  keep  this  letter  a  secret  until  you  see  me.  I  am  not 
giving  you  a  vain  hope,  I  am  pretty  sure.  Answer  immediately  and  let 
me  know  if  I  shall  go  to  see  you,  or  if  you  will  provide  the  means  for 
me  to  act.     I  am,  dear  sir,  Yours  truly, 

A.  S.  JOMES,  N.  Y. 
(Please  consider  this  letter  confidential.) 

The  same  day  Jones's  letter  reached  me,  I  received 
one  from  Bergen's  Point,  New  Jersey,  requesting  me  to 
meet  the  writer  in  New  York.  I  telegraphed  to  Hen- 
derson to  meet  me  at  a  hotel  in  New  York  the  same 
evening,  and  to  the  person  at  Bergen's*  Point  the  next 
morning  at  the  same  place.  Henderson  called,  but  the 
train  being  delayed,  he  left  the  hotel  before  I  arrived. 
In  the  morning  I  arranged  with  a  detective  officer  of 
New  York,  and  Captain  Wood  of  Philadelphia,  who  had 
been  sent  to  look  after  a  child  reported  in  New  York, 
to  go  with  me  to  find  Jones.  The  detectives  remained 
in  the  neighbcTrhood,  while  I  went  into  the  place,  which 
was  a  gaudily  furnished  drinking- house.  Very  soon 
after  I  entered  the  room  Jones  came  in — a  man  about 
twenty-eight  to  thirty  years  of  age,  neatly  dressed,  quiet 
in  his  manner,  with  no  appearance  of  intemperate  habits. 
At  first  he  impressed  me  rather  favorably;  after  intro- 
ducing myself,  we  went  to  the  back  part  of  the  saloon 
and  showing  him  the  letter  which  l^had  written,  I  told 
him  I  was  ready  to  hear  what  information  he  had  rela- 
tive to  my  little  boy.  Finding  that  he  hesitated  about 
telling,  I  said  to  him  he  need  fear  nothing,  I  was  alone, 
and  he  should  be  protected  from  injury;  he  should  not 
be  molested  by  officers,  and  should  receive  the  reward 
13 


290  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

of  five  thousand  dollars  if  he  gave  information  which 
would  lead  to  the  discovery  of  the  child.  After  consid- 
erable parleying,  he  stated  that  he  was  a  seafaring  man, 
and  had  just  arrived  in  New  York  from  Cienfuegos.  On 
the  previous  Monday  night,  while  on  the  ferry  from 
Brooklyn,  he  chanced  to  be  standing  near  two  men 
who  were  pretty  drunk,  and  overheard  one  of  the  men 
say  to  the  other,  *'  How  about  the  Ross  child?  It's  a  bad 
job ;  we  ought  to  give  the  kid  up."  They  spoke  of  Nova 
Scotia,  and  of  the  child  being  near  Summerville.  This 
was  the  substance  of  what,  by  close  questioning,  I  ob- 
tained from  him,  and  he  declared  it  was  all  he  had 
heard.  He  said  he  had  never  been  to  Nova  Scotia,  and 
did  not  know  whether  there  was  a  town  named  Sum- 
merville in  the  province.  I  asked  if  he  knew  the  men, 
or  either  of  them  ;  he  said  he  knew  one  of  them,  and 
he  was  a  very  bad  fellow.  I  asked  if  he  could  see  him 
again.  "Yes,"  he  said,  "if  he  looked  for  him."  I  told 
him  that  there  was  so  little  in  what  he  had  told  me  I 
could  not  form  an  opinion,  and  arranged  with  him  to 
see  the  man  with  whom  he  said  he  was  acquainted, 
and  had  heard  talk  on  the  ferry  boat,  and  appointed 
another  meeting  with  him  in  the  afternoon. 

At  the  appointed  hour,  in  company  with  a  different 
officer,  I  again  went  to  the  saloon,  and  found  Jones  wait- 
ing for  me.  In  reply  to  my  question,  whether  he  had 
seen  his  man,  he  said:  "Yes,  but  this  is  not  the  place  to 
talk :  we  will  go  elsewhere ;  wait  a  few  minutes."  I  stood 
with  my  back  to  the  front  door,  and,  after  a  pause,  he 
said,  "  Now  I  am  ready/'  As  I  turned  I  saw  a  person 
couching  down  in  the  corner  of  the  room  with  his  hat 
partly  drawn  over  his  eyes,  appearing  as  though  he  did 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  29 1 

not  wish  to  be  recognized.  We  passed  him,  and  as  we 
were  walking  on  the  street  Jones  said,  "  Did  you  notice 
that  man  behind  the  door  of  the  saloon  as  we  passed 
out?"  I  said,  "I  saw  some  one  who  appeared  to  me  to 
be  trying  to  conceal  himself."  He  replied,  "  That  is 
the  man  who  gave  me  the  information."  I  asked  him 
to  go  with  me  to  my  hotel,  and  there  we  could  talk 
without  being  interfered  with;  but  he  declined,  and 
proposed  going  to  a  beer-garden  in  the  neighborhood, 
where  he  could  talk  without  being  overheard. 

Arriving  at  the  garden  we  took  seats  at  a  small  table; 
the  officers  came  in  very  soon  after  us,  and  seated  them- 
selves on  the  other  side  of  the  garden.  My  suspicions 
were  now  aroused  that  something  was  wrong;  and,  in 
order  to  draw  my  companion  out,  I  reiterated  my  former 
promises,  provided  he  told  the  truth,  and  his  information 
should  result  in  recovering  my  child.  He  said  he 
would  not  accept  more  than  one  thousand  dollars  under 
any  circumstances,  and  did  not  want  anything  until  I 
had  possession  of  my  son.  "  Let  me  know  now  what 
you  have  learned  since  this  morning,"  I  said  to  him. 
He  began  by  saying  that  "years  ago  he  had  committed 
a  very  bad  act  in  company  with  the  man  who  gave  him 
this  information  relative  to  my  child,  and  was  obliged 
to  go  to  sea  to  escape  punishment :  when  in  port  he  was 
in  the  power  of  this  man,  who  was  the  only  person  who 
knew  of  his  guilt;  also  if  he  knew  that  he  was  now  com- 
municating with  me  he  would  certainly  kill  him."  I 
told  him  it  was  not  necessary  he  should  be  known; 
what  I  wanted  was  to  get  my  child,  and  after  he  gave 
me  the  information  which  would  secure  him,  he  could 
go  where   he  pleased  with  the  money.     After  a  long 


292  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

and  earnest  conversation  all  I  elicited  from  him  was, 
that  about  five  months  ago  the  child  was  taken  to  Prince 
Edward's  Island,  British  Provinces,  and  put  out  to 
board,  and  he  could  go  to  the  place,  or  within  a  half 
mile  of  the  house,  and  would  go  with  me,  and  after  I 
had  the  child  I  should  give  him  one  thousand  dollars, 
and  try  to  get  him  some  other  employment  than  follow- 
ing the  sea,  away  from  New  York,  as  he  wanted  to  break 
with  his  associates  in  that  city,  who,  whenever  he  came 
into  port,  found  him  and  led  him  deeper  into  crime. 
*'  Now  Jones,"  I  said, "  I  have  no  assurance  that  what 
you  say  is  the  truth,  and  don't  feel  warranted  in  under- 
taking such  a  journey  on  your  mere  word.  Were 
you  ever  on  Prince  Edward's  Island?"  "Once  a  vessel 
on  which  I  was  stopped  at  Cape  Carmiento  for  water, 
but  I  never  went  on  the  island,"  he  said.  "  How  could 
you  go  so  near  to  the  house  in  which  the  child  is  said 
to  be  ?"  "  The  description  I  have  is  so  plain  I  could 
easily  go  there,"  he  replied. 

I  told  him  I  doubted  his  whole  story,  and  until  he 
gave  me  better  evidence  of  its  truthfulness  I  could  not 
tell  what  I  should  do.  He  said,  "  I  will  not  talk  any 
more  with  you."  "Why,  you  came  here  to  tell  me  all 
you  knew,  and  now  you  hold  back;  you  are  trifling  with 
me,  and  I  will  not  let  you  escape,  and  must  know  what 
your  purposes  are."  He  emphatically  declined  saying 
anything  more  at  that  time,  and  appointed  another 
meeting  at  my  hotel  at  eight  o'clock  the  same  night, 
when  he  said  he  would  tell  everything,  and  also  state 
his  plan  of  investigating  the  matter.  He  said  he 
boarded  opposite  the  saloon  in  which  we  had  met,  and 
had  a  wife  living  in  Boston.    He  said,  "  My  family  have 


LOST   CHILDREN   RESTORED.  293 

all  discarded  me  on  account  of  my  bad  conduct,  and  I 
want  to  reform.  Mr.  Ross,  I'll  see  you  to-night,  but 
will  not  talk  with  you  any  more  at  this  time." 

Finding  the  fellow  was  stubborn,  I  let  him  go,  believ- 
ing if  he  really  had  any  information  he  would  come  to 
the  hotel,  and  if  he  had  a  scheme  he  would  also  come, 
as  he  had  not  yet  accomplished  his  designs.  As  he 
left  me  I  told  him  I  should  have  a  friend  with  me  in  my 
room,  who  would  hear  what  was  said,  but  would  not 
interfere  in  any  way  to  harm  or  disturb  him.  He  con- 
sentecj,  and  went  off,  the  officers  following  him,  and 
finding  that  he  went  to  a  sailor  boarding-house  opposite 
the  saloon,  as  he  had  said. 

About  half  past  eight  o'clock  Jones  came  to  the  hotel, 
and  with  Officer  Wood  we  went  up  to  my  room.  I  sent 
for  a  Gazetteer,  and  locked  the  door,  putting  the  key  in 
my  pocket,  determined  to  find  out  if  possible  what  this 
fellow  was  after.  In  the  presence  of  Mr.  Wood  I  reiter- 
ated the  promises  I  had  made  to  him  during  the  day, 
and  stated  what  Jones  had  told  me,  and  that  his  coming 
to-night  was  for  the  purpose  of  letting  me  know  every- 
thing he  had  learned  in  relation  to  the  child  and  his 
whereabouts.  Wood  assured  him  protection,  and  by 
entreaty  and  appeals,  in  fact  in  every  way,  tried  to  in- 
duce him  to  make  a  clean  breast  of  all  he  professed  to 
know.  After  parleying  for  an  hour,  he  said,  "  Let  me 
write  a  telegram  to  my  wife."  In  this  he  asked  her  if 
she  knew  whether  certain  persons  were  still  living  m 
Alberton,  Prince  Edward's  Island.  Handing  it  to  me, 
he  asked  to  have  it  sent  to  Boston.  Turning  to  the 
Gazetteer,  I  found  that  Alberton  is  one  of  the  chief  towns 
of  the  island.     "  Then  your  wife  knows  people  on  the 


294  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

island  ?"  I  said.  "  She  is  from  the  island,"  he  replied. 
"  And  yet,  you  say,  you  never  were  there  except  to 
touch  at  the  said  cape."  "  No — stop — don't  send  that 
dispatch:  you  write  one  that  I  will  dictate.  Address 
George  Robinson,  Alberton,  Prince  Edward's  Island. 
Ask  him  if  George  Howard  or  George  Wells  lives  there 
now."  Mr.  Wood  asked  him  what  connection  that  had 
with  the  case,  and,  after  considerable  delay,  he  replied: 
"If  they  live  there,  I  will  be  better  satisfied  that  I  am 
right,  as  the  child  had  been  put  to  board  with  both  of 
them,  but  was  not  now  with  either  of  them."  "  You  seem 
to  know  people  there,"  I  said.  "  Yes,  these  people — my 
wife's  relatives  live  there,  and  through  them  I  became 
acquainted  with  these  persons."  I  promised  to  send 
the  message,  and  asked  him  to  tell  us  what  we  came 
together  to  hear — the  whole  history  of  the  child.  He 
replied  that  he  would  not  until  I  received  an  answer  to 
the  telegram. 

It  was  now  near  midnight,  Saturday,  and  we  had  not 
yet  found  out  what  the  fellow  was  after;  he  had  not 
asked  for  any  money,  and  would  not  say  anything  more 
that  night ;  but  promised  to  see  me  again  on  Monday 
morning,  and  in  the  meantime  would  again  find  his 
informant,  and  get  further  information.  Baffled  and 
provoked  by  the  fellow's  apparent  secretiveness,  we  con- 
cluded to  let  him  go,  knowing  that  he  could  easily  be 
reached  should  he  attempt  to  get  away.  We  were  now 
inclined  to  believed  he  had  a  plan  by  which  to  get  to 
Prince  Edward's  Island,  but  there  seemed  something 
else  which  he  barely  hinted  at,  which  we  were  not  able 
to  find  out.  Although  I  had  but  little  faith  in  the  fel- 
low's story,  yet  not  wishing  to  let  anything  pass  without 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  295 

a  thorough  investigation — and  more  particularly  this, 
because  in  one  of  the  abductors'  letters  it  was  stated 
they  had  been  to  the  British  Provinces — I  took  the 
telegram  to  the  office ;  but  there  being  no  station  in 
Alberton,  I  wrote  to  Mr.  Robinson,  asking  him  if  he 
knew  Jones,  and  the  other  persons  named  in  the  dis- 
patch, etc.,  etc.,  and  asked  for  an  answer  from  the  nearest 
telegraph  office. 

On  Monday  morning,  by  arrangement,  Superintend- 
ent Walling  came  to  the  hotel,  and  at  ten  o'clock,  the 
appointed  hour,  Jones  made  his  appearance.  After  in- 
troducing Mr.  Walling  as  a  friend,  I  again  stated  our 
previous  conversation,  and  said  we  were  now  ready  to 
hear  from  liinL  He  asked  if  there  had  been  a  reply  to 
his  telegram.  I  explained  how  it  was  not  possible  to 
get  an  answer.  "  Well,  now  I  will  tell  you  all  I  know," 
he  said.  He  was  an  Irishman  by  birth,  and  when  he 
came  to  the  United  States  he  joined  the  7th  New  Hamp- 
shire regiment,  and  there  became  acquainted  with  Jim 
Boyd,  who  taught  him  something  about  seamanship: 
when  the  call  was  made  for  sailors,  he  with  Boyd,  a 
man  named  John  F.  Pool,  and  several  others  of  the 
same  regiment,  were  transferred  to  the  navy.  After 
their  discharge  from  the  navy  Boyd  and  Pool  enticed 
him  to  commit  crimes,  and  to  avoid  arrest  he  went  to 
sea;  whenever  he  returned  Pool  found  him  out,  and 
induced  him  to  join  in  other  crimes,  threatening  him 
with  exposure  if  he  declined.  He  thus  had  him  in  his 
power.  This  Pool,  he  said,  was  one  of  the  men  who 
talked  on  the  ferry  boat  about  Charley  Ross,  and  pro- 
posed to  him  to  go  to  Prince  Edward's  Island,  and 
transfer  the  child  to  Canada.     Pool  said  the  child  was 


296  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

at  Goodman's  hotel,  twelve  miles  from  Sunnyside,  in 
care  of  a  man  named  Sinclair,  and  now  he  was  ready  to 
go  with  me,  or  any  one  else,  and  get  him ;  afterwards 
he  would  expect  to  get  one  thousand  dollars.  He  said 
that  was  all  he  had  to  say. 

Superintendent  Walling  up  to  this  time  said  nothing. 
Now,  rising  from  the  sofa  on  which  he  was  seated, 
and  looking  Jones  full  in  the  face,  he  said,  **  Do  you 
know  me,  Mr.  Jones?"  he  replied  "No."  "Never  saw 
me  before?"  "No."  "  I  want  you  to  go  with  me."  The 
Superintendent  took  him  to  police  headquarters,  and 
said  to  him,  *'  Now,  Jones,  if  this  story  you  have  been 
telling  is  false,  say  so,  and  I  will  let  you  walk  out  of  this 
office.  Do  not  put  Mr.  Ross  to  any  further  trouble 
and  expense;  if  you  have  been  lying,  I  shall  find  out 
whether  it  is  true  or  false  before  the  day  is  over."  He 
declared  it  was  the  truth.  He  was  put  in  charge  of  an 
officer,  and  a  telegram  sent  to  one  of  the  district  station 
houses  to  have  Pool,  who  was  well  known,  brought  to 
the  Central  office.  In  the  meantime  a  telegraphic  dis- 
patch was  sent  to  a  magistrate  of  Prince  Edward's  Island 
to  investigate  the  matter  and  report 

Pool,  an  uneducated  but  very  shrewd  Irishman,  was 
brought  to  the  office  in  the  evening,  and  underwent 
a  searching  examination.  Said  he  was  a  runner  for 
United  States  Navy,  enlisting  men;  had  been  convicted 
of  burglary  in  Trenton,  New  Jersey,  served  part  of  his 
time ;  since  then  was  an  honest  man,  except  he  would 
drink,  and  by  night  he  was  generally  pretty  well  set  up. 
Said  he  had  heard  people  talk  about  Charley  Ross, 
but  could  not  read,  and  like  enough  he  had  talked  about 
the  boy  himself  in  the  taverns;  never  knew  of  a  reward 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  29/ 

having  been  offered  for  the  child ;  never  knew  Mosher 
or  Douglas;  was  in  the  army  in  the  7th  New  Hamp- 
shire regiment;  had  been  transferred  to  the  navy  with 
three  or  four  other  men,  Boyd,  an  Italian,  and  a  man 
called  Jones;  this  last  fellow  was  college-bred,  smart. 
"Now,  Pool,"  the  Superintendent  said,  "tell  all  you 
know  about  Charley  Ross."  "  Oh,  indeed,  Superin- 
tendent, I  don't  know  anything,  only  what  I  hear  others 
say."  "Were  you  ever  on  Prince  Edward's  Island?" 
"No."  "Whom  do  you  know  there?"  "No  one." 
"  Didn't  you  talk  with  some  one  on  the  ferry  boat  on 
last  Monday  night  about  Charley  Ross?"  "Very 
likely  I  did — I  was  pretty  drunk  that  night,  and  I  don't 
know  what  I  said.  Oh,  Superintendent,"  he  said, 
scratching  his  head,  "  I  begin  to  see  into  this  thing. 
That  rascal,  Jones,  wants  to  give  me  trouble;  I  won- 
dered what  he  came  after  me  yesterday  for,  and  asked 
me  to  come  to  a  saloon,  and  when  I  came  there  he 
didn't  even  treat;  I  had  to  pay  for  the  drinks;  and,  be- 
sides, I  gave  him  a  great  beating  about  five  months  ago, 
and  now,  for  revenge,  he  has  me  brought  here  on  the 
Charley  Ross  affair.  I'll  find  him  to-night,  and  give 
him  the  soundest  drubbing  he  ever  had." 

After  thoroughly  examining  Pool,  we  were  satisfied  he 
knew  nothing,  and  let  him  go.  He  went  away  mutter- 
ing vengeance  against  the  college-bred  scoundrel,  who, 
as  he  said,  had  him  arrested  in  broad  daylight,  when  all 
his  friends  could  see  him  walking  with  an  officer.  The 
Superintendent  then  said,  "  Mr.  Ross,  I  wish  you  had 
given  Jones  five  or  ten  dollars,  I  could  then  put  him 
below ;  but  we  have  no  charge  on  which  to  hold  him, 
and  will  have  to  let  him  go  also.""  This  fellow  wanted 
13* 


298  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

to  satisfy  his  revenge  on  Pool  for  having  received  a 
beating  from  him,  by  getting  Pool  locked  up;  and  also 
wanted  to  get  to  Prince  Edward's  Island,  and  then 
give  me  the  slip.  I  did  not  hear  if  Pool  found  him, 
but  think  Jones  would  keep  very  clear  of  him.  In 
about  a  week  I  received  a  letter  from  the  magistrate 
on  Prince  Edward's  Island,  saying  he  could  not  find 
Sinclair,  and  that  there  was  nothing  in  the  report. 
This  swindler  kept  me  in  New  York  three  days,  and 
put  me  to  trouble  and  expense,  without  any  gain  to 
himself 

While  on  this  visit  to  New  York  I  went  to  see  three 
children,  each  one  of  whom  was  reported  as  likely  to 
be  my  little  boy.  There  was  only  one  of  them  who 
bore  any  resemblance  to  Charley,  and  he  evidently 
belonged  to  the  person  who  had  him  in  charge.  One 
of  the  others  appeared  to  be  an  American  child,  in  an 
Italian  family;  and  the  third  was  a  child  whose  parents 
had  died,  and  a  poor,  warm-hearted  Irish  woman  had 
taken  him  with  the  intention  of  providing  for  him. 

The  following  telegram  was  received  by  the  Mayor 
in  reference  to  a  child  who  was  on  a  vessel  which  was 
ice-bound  at  Barnegat  Inlet,  New  Jersey : 

Barnegat,  February  ^,  iSfS' 
Mayor  of  Philadelphia. — Man,  woman  and  three  children  on 
board  a  sloop  at  Barnegat  Inlet.     One  of  the  children  answers  every 
description  of  Charley  Ross.     Will  you  send  a  detective  ? 

Signed, . 

Efforts  were  at  once  made  through  the  telegraph  to 
get  a  description  of  the  child;  but  in  consequence  of 
the  sloop  lying  in  the  inlet  ice-bound,  she  could  not  be 
reached  from  that  side  of  the  bay,  and  my  brother  and 
detective  McKibbin  went  to  examine  into  the  matter. 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  299 

Their  drive  of  twenty-four  miles  through  the  sleet  and 
ice  during  the  night,  was  far  from  pleasant.  On  the 
following  day,  arriving  at  the  United  States  signal 
station,  the  Sergeant  in  command  volunteered  to  ac- 
company them  on  board  the  vessel.  They  found  a  man, 
his  wife  and  three  children — one  a  boy  about  three 
years  old,  a  beautiful  child — but  not  my  Charley.  The 
man  had  ventured  in  his  small  craft  in  mid-winter,  with 
his  family,  to  make  a  voyage  from  New  Bedford,  Mas- 
sachusetts, to  Florida,  and  was  very  nearly  wrecked, 
and  had  put  into  the  inlet  for  repairs.  While  on  this 
trip  my  brother  learned  that  there  was  a  scattered  popu- 
lation who  lived  among  the  highlands  and  pines  of 
Monmouth  county,  New  Jersey,  and  along  the  shores 
of  Raritan  Bay,  and  on  the  rivers  and  creeks  which  flow 
into  it,  down  to  near  New  Brunswick,  many  of  whom 
were  unable  to  read,  and  few  taking  a  newspaper.  In 
some  of  these  isolated  places  persons  had  little  commu- 
nication with  their  neighbors,  and  there  were  spots  in 
which  a  child  might  be  kept  without  a  likelihood  of 
detection.  This  information,  together  with  the  fact  that 
two  of  the  abductors'  letters  were  posted  in  New  Bruns- 
wick, determined  us  to  make  a  thorough  search  through 
these  localities,  in  the  hope  of  getting  information  which 
might  prove  of  value.  Detective  McKibbin  and  my- 
self went  to  Red  Bank,  on  the  Shrewsbury  river,  near 
the  lower  extremity  of  the  highlands,  and  were  there 
joined  by  a  former  resident  of  Monmouth  county,  who 
volunteered  to  accompany  us.  At  Red  Bank  we  called 
on  the  person  whose  store  Mosher  and  Douglas  robbed 
about  four  years  ago,  and  for  which  Mosher  was  ar- 
rested and  lodged  in  jail  in  Freehold,  New  Jersey.     It 


300  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

was  immediately  after  his  escape  from  this  prison  that 
he  came  to  Philadelphia  to  live. 

From  this  person  we  learned  that  two  small  vessels 
had  been  lying  for  several  days  on  the  river,  very  close 
to  the  shore,  not  however  an   unusual  thing.     During 
the  last  night  they  were  on  the  river  the  store  was  en- 
tered through  the  cellar,  and  a  large  amount  of  dry 
goods  carried  off.     The  proprietor  on  looking  about  in 
the  morning  discovered   that  both  vessels  had  gone 
away.     He  chartered  a  steam-tug  and  followed  in  the 
direction  of  Staten  Island  and  Long  Island,  overtook 
one  of  the  boats,  and  on  searching  her  discovered  that 
the  goods  were  not  on  board ;  but  the  delay  occasioned 
by  overhauling  the  wrong  vessel,  gave  sufficient  time 
for  the  guilty  parties  to  escape.     The  men,  Mosher  and 
Douglas,  were  strangers  in  the  village;  ho  one  seemed 
to  know  them ;  and  Mosher  returned  to  Red  Bank  the 
following  morning,  and  remained  several  days,  no  per- 
son supposing  him  to  be  the  burglar.     In  the  case  of 
my  child's  abduction,  he  returned  to  his  home  on  the 
evening  of  the  3d  of  July — thus  repeating  the  same 
plan  adopted  in  the  robbery.     After  a  few  weeks  the 
vessel  was  found,  and  finally  the  owner  of  the  vessel, 
which  led  to  Mosher's  arrest  and  confinement  in  Free- 
hold jail.    Having  learned  these  points,  our  next  object 
was  to  find  out  if  any  of  his  associates,  or  any  other 
suspicious  persons,  lived    in  the  neighborhood.     We 
were  informed  of  two  thieves  who  were  believed  to  be 
acquainted  with  him,  both  of  whom  had  been  convicted 
of  burglary^  and  were  now  at  large.     We  next  engaged 
as  a  guide  a  person  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
Highlands.     During  the  night  the  weather  became  in- 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  .  3OI 

tensely  cold,  the  thermometer  fell  to  6°  below  zero,  and 
the  wind  blew  a  perfect  hurricane  from  the  north-west. 
A  carriage  was  in  waiting  for  us  early  in  the  morning; 
we  went  about  six  miles  to  a  dense  thicket  of  pines, 
where  we  were  told  there  lived  a  woman  with  a  small 
child,  who  had  been  brought  to  her  to  board  a  few 
months  before.  The  child  was  not  Charley,  and  the 
woman  said  his  boarding  was  paid  regularly  by  some 
one  she  did  not  know.  Returning  to  Red  Bank,  we 
learned  that  the  property  known  as  the  Highlands  of 
New  Jersey  is  owned  by  three  gentlemen,  who  are 
very  careful  not  to  allow  persons  to  build  houses  in  the 
gorges  or  valleys,  and  the  inhabitants  live  mainly  on 
the  coast.  They  obtain  a  livelihood  chiefly  by  catch- 
ing clams.  The  houses  are  generally  in  clusters,  and 
the  weather  being  so  extremely  cold,  the  people  were 
all  in  doors,  giving  us  the  advantage  of  seeing  all  the 
children  at  home  and  making  all  the  inquiries  we 
desired. 

This  search  occupied  two  days,  without  resulting  in 
anything  of  moment;  but  we  met  with  numbers  of  per- 
sons who  had  never  heard  of  the  abduction  of  Charlev 
Ross. 

We  then  drove  to  Keyport,  following  the  courses  of 
the  rivers  and  inlets;  making  inquiries  at  the  different 
houses,  stores,  etc.,  to  find  out  if  any  strange  child  had 
been  brought  into  the  neighborhood.  We  were  again 
told  of  the  two  suspicious  persons  before  referred  to, 
and  it  was  said  that  one  of  them  had  at  his  house  a 
child  which  was  not  his  own.  On  arriving  at  the  vil- 
lage where  they  resided,  we  procured  the  assistance  of 
an  officer  and  went  through  both  houses.    In  one  there 


302  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

was  a  little  girl  about  five  years  old,  who  did  not  be- 
long to  the  family.  We  here  learned  that  between 
Keyport  and  the  next  village  there  was  a  large  foreign 
population,  who  lived  in  small  houses  scattered  through 
the  woods  and  along  unfrequented  roads.  Securing 
the  services  of  a  guide  thoroughly  familiar  with  every 
acre  of  the  ground,  we  started  in  the  morning  to  walk, 
since  the  pilot  insisted  we  should  have  to  go  off  the 
road  so  often  that  we  would  not  be  able  to  make  any 
time  with  a  horse  and  wagon. 

During  the  preceding  afternoon  it  had  rained  very 
heavily,  and  in  the  night  the  wind  changed  to  the 
north-west,  the  weather  again  becoming  intensely  cold, 
freezing  a  sheet  of  ice  all  over  the  roads.  We  made 
our  way  as  best  we  could,  slipping  and  sliding  along 
the  road  through  the  woods,  among  briars  and  bram- 
bles, first  on  one  side  of  the  path,  then  on  the  other, 
going  into  almost  every  house,  talking  with  the  people 
and  looking  at  their  children.  We  found  very  few 
persons  who  had  not  heard  of  the  taking  of  Charley 
Ross.  Generally  the  people  were  very  kind  when  they 
understood  what  we  were  seeking;  and  in  some  in- 
stances seemed  very  anxious  to  give  us  all  the  informa- 
tion they  possibly  could,  and  expressed  true  sympathy 
with  the  hope  that  we  would  succeed  in  finding  the 
child. 

At  one  house,  in  a  very  secluded  place,  the  mother 
seemed  to  be  afraid  that  we  would  take  her  children 
away;  and  as  long  as  we  remained  near  the  house,  she 
would  not  permit  the  children  to  approach  us  or  allow 
us  to  look  at  them,  although  we  assured  her  all  we 
hoped  for  was  tliat  we  miiTlit  hear  of  a  strange  child 


LOST   CHILDREN    RESTORED.  3O3 

having  been  brought  into  that  country  to  board.  But 
she  was  too  much  alarmed  to  talk  with  us  at  all.  At 
the  next  house  we  spoke  of  her  strange  conduct,  and 
the  people  told  us  she  was  all  right,  and  had  no  child- 
ren but  her  own,  but  was  very  timid.  About  one 
o'clock  we  reached  the  next  village,  pretty  tired  after  a 
walk  of  about  twelve  miles  over  the  ice,  failing  to  getj 
any  trace  of  Charley.  We  learned  that  Mosher  and 
Douglas  had,  during  the  fall  of  1874,  been  in  one  of  the 
creeks  that  flow  into  the  bay.  The  person  who  gave 
us  the  information  knew  both  the  men,  and  talked  with 
them,  and  had  them  watched  nearly  all  night,  supposing 
they  had  come  to  the  creek  to  steal  his  oysters. 

From  Little  Washington,  the  village  to  which  we 
had  walked,  we  drove  to  New  Brunswick.  On  calling 
upon  the  Chief  of  Police  of  that  city,  he  proffered  to 
aid  us  in  the  further  prosecution  of  the  search,  and 
arranged  with  a  former  U.  S.  Marshal  to  go  with  us  the 
following  day  to  search  along  South  Creek  on  both 
sides,  and  through  the  forests,  wherever  there  were  any 
dwelling-houses.  The  next  day  the  country  towards 
South  and  Perth  Amboy  was  examined.  Thus  this 
extended  search  was  made,  we  having  been  absent  eight 
days  without  finding  anything  to  shed  light  on  the 
subject;  and  the  only  trace  we  discovered  of  the  ab- 
ductors was  that  they  had  been  in  a  small  vessel  in  one 
of  the  creeks  of  the  Raritan  bay. 

Our  experience  has  taught  us  that  it  is  the  easiest 
possible  thing  to  be  mistaken  in  identity,  and  we  are 
almost  ready  to  conclude  that  there  is  very  little  pros- 
pect of  any  stranger  being  able  to  recognize  our  little 
boy  by  looking  at  a  picture.     In  nearly  every  instance 


304  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

where  persons  have  reported  a  child  which  they  sup- 
posed was  mine,  it  is  stated  that  the  pictures  they  have 
seen  are  exactly  like  the  child  they  write  about;  and  in 
many  cases  it  has  been  difficult  to  convince  persons 
that  they  were  in  error.  One  of  the  most  remarkable 
instances  of  mistaken  identity,  not  only  in  a  child,  but 
also  in  that  of  a  man,  is  as  follows: 

Brush's  Mills,  New  York,  April  22 ^  187J. 

To  THE  Parents  of  Little  Charley  Ross. — Last  Saturday  there 
was  a  very  strange  appearing  man  came  into  our  village ;  he  had  a  little 
boy  with  him  about  six  years  old.  The  man  called  himself  a  clock 
tinker.  He  did  not  seem  to  be  the  boy's  father.  The  child  would  not 
tell  his  name.  He  had  hazel  eyes,  flaxen  hair  cut  very  short ;  should 
think  it  would  curl  if  allowed  to  grow.  They  stayed  in  our  village  until 
Monday,  and  went  into  several  houses ;  at  each  place  the  man  told  a 
different  story.  He  said  he  was  going  west,  and  spoke  of  Charley 
Ross  several  times;  said  he  had  come  very  near  being  arrested;  persons 
thought  he  had  Charley  Ross  with  him. 

Thinking  this  information  would  be  of  some  use  to  you  is  the  reason 
I  write.  I  have  thought  so  much  about  it  I  cannot  rest.  If  your  child 
has  been  restored,  let  me  know. 

If  you  have  any  idea  that  this  child  is  yours,  and  will  begin  a  search 
immediately,  I  think  he  could  be  found  in  Northern  New  York,  etc.,  etc. 
Signed, ,  Brush  Mills. 

To  this  letter  I  immediately  replied,  enclosing  a 
circular  describing  Charley,  and  also  his  photograph, 
and  asked  the  writer  to  describe  more  particularly  both 
the  child  and  the  man ;  if  possible,  to  say  where  they 
came  from,  and  in  fact  to  write  everything  she  knew  or 
could  find  out  about  them ;  also,  if  she  could  get  a 
picture  of  the  child  and  send  it  to  me  at  the  earliest 
moment. 

May  8th  I  received  a  letter  from  the  same  person, 
saying : 

Three  weeks  have  elapsed  since  I  saw  the  child;  but  will  descril)e 
him  as  well   as    I    can.      He  had  flaxen  hair,  high  forehead,   brown 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  3O5 

eyes ;  when  spoken  to  would  place  one  little  arm  over  his  eyes.  The 
man  stayed  on  a  back  street  in  the  village  over  Sunday.  A  number  of 
persons  went  to  see  the  child.  As  soon  as  they  began  to  talk  about 
Charley  Ross,  the  man  would  take  the  boy  and  go  out  of  the  house 
and  if  any  person  looked  at  the  child,  he  would  get  mad.  I  asked  the 
little  fellow  his  name ;  he  said  he  did  not  know.  Asked  him  who  his 
papa  was ;  he  shook  his  head  and  said,  "  Don't  know."  The  child  is 
kept  in  such  fear  that  he  dare  not  tell.  On  Monday  two  men  went  to 
arrest  the  man  ;  the  woman  at  whose  house  he  stayed  said  he  had  gone 
away.     Inquiry  was  made ;  but  no  one  had  seen  him  go  away. 

If  the  man  had  not  mistrusted  that  he  would  have  been  arrested,  he 
would  not  have  left  as  he  did.  There  is  no  doubt  but  the  boy  is  your 
son.  The  man  who  has  the  child  is  a  vicious,  ugly-looking  man,  has 
every  mark  of  a  villain,  has  been  wounded  through  his  shoulder,  scars 
on  his  face  and  wrists,  looked  as  if  he  had  been  cut  with  a  knife.  He  said 
he  had  travelled  since  February  last,  and  was  in  New  York  City  last 
winter,  etc.,  etc. 

How  far  he  is  from  here  now  it  is  hard  to  tell ;  but  may  not  have  got 
far  away,  as  the  weather  has  been  very  cold  since  he  left  this  place.  If 
he  gets  where  nothing  is  said  of  Charley  Ross,  and  can  get  liquor,  he 
would  stay  a  week  or  more.  Now,  if  you  would  take  a  part  of  the 
money  that  is  offered  as  a  reward,  you  could  find  him.  I  think  he  is 
still  in  this  county. 

Now  I  am  certain  that  the  child  is  little  Charley  Ross.  May  God 
speed  the  train  that  will  bring  some  one  to  find  him.  It  has  troubled 
me  much  since  I  saw  the  child  travelling  with  that  brute  of  a  man. 
Had  I  not  been  certain  about  this  being  your  child,  I  should  never  have 
written  to  you. 

Signed, ,  Brush's  Mills. 

To  this  letter  I  replied,  and  enclosed  a  photograph 
of  a  person  for  whom  search  had  been  made  without 
being  able  to  find  him — and  having,  the  same  day  on 
which  I  received  the  above  letter,  received  information 
that  the  man  we  had  been  inquiring  for  had  gone  to 
Vermont  or  Canada,  I  asked  her  to  examine  the  pic- 
ture I  enclosed  to  her,  and  show  it  to  other  persons 
who  had  seen  the  clock-tinker,  and  if  it  resembled  him 
to  telegraph  me  and  I  would  leave  by  the  next  train  for 


306  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Brush's  Mills.     Three  days  afterwards  I  received  the 

following  telegram,  dated 

Brush's  Mills,  May  14, 1875. 
The  photograph  is  the  same  as  the  man  who  was  here  with  the  child. 

This  seemed  almost  conclusive  that  at  last  the  right 
trace  had  been  discovered,  and,  without  delay,  the  same 
night.  Lieutenant  Beale  was  detailed  to  accompany  me 
to  look  the  parties  up.  We  took  the  midnight  train 
for  New  York,  and  at  eight  o'clock,  A.  M.,  next  day, 
left  via  Hudson  railroad  for  St.  Albans,  Vermont,  arriv- 
ing there  at  six  o'clock,  A.  M.,  the  following  morning 
(Sunday).  We  were  compelled  to  remain  in  St.  Albans 
until  Monday  morning,  no  trains  being  run  on  Sunday. 
St.  Albans  is  one  of  the  prettiest  towns  I  have  ever  seen ; 
beautifully  located,  regularly  laid  out,  and  well  built. 
There  are  many  very  handsome  stores  in  the  town,  and 
beautiful  residences  in  the  vicinity.  Monday,  left  St. 
Albans  for  Brush's  Mills,  ninety-four  miles  distant,  and 
about  four  miles  from  the  Canada  line.  We  arrived 
there  about  noon,  and  were  received  at  the  station  by 
the  husband  of  the  lady  who  had  been  corresponding 
with  me.  We  went  directly  to  his  house,  being  anxious 
to  find  the  clock-tinker  and  the  child  as  soon  as 
possible. 

The  lady  spoke  very  confidently  that  the  child  was 
my  Charley,  and  that  the  picture  I  had  sent  her  was 
surely  that  of  the  man.  I  asked  her  what  led  her  in 
the  first  place  to  think  the  child  was  mine;  she  said, 
"  I  had  heard  of  your  loss."  "  Had  you  seen  a  likeness, 
or  had  you  seen  a  description  of  my  little  boy,  before 
receiving  the  one  I  sent  to  you  ?"  I  asked.  "  I  had  not, 
but  one  of  the  neighbors  had."     On  getting  it,  I  found 


LOST   CHILDREN   RESTORED.  307 

it  to  be  one  of  Pinkerton's  circulars,  with  a  lithograph 
likeness  and  a  full  description  of  our  child.  My  faith 
now  began  to  waver.  "The  man  treated  the  child 
cruelly  and  threatened  to  kill  him,  and  acted  as  though 
he  did  not  belong  to  him,"  she  said.  After  a  little 
further  conversation  I  asked  her, "  Where  did  the  man 
go  when  he  left  your  house?"  She  replied,  "To  the 
next  neighbor's."  I  said,  "We  will  go  there,  and  get 
their  impressions  of  the  matter."  These  people  were 
more  enthusiastic  than  the  others  had  been — all  agreed 
that  the  child  was  afraid  to  talk,  and  could  be  no  other 
than  my  Charley.  I  now  proposed  to  see  the  people 
with  whom  they  had  stayed  over  Sunday.  Before  we 
arrived  at  the  house,  it  became  known  in  the  village 
what  we  had  come  for;  and  very  soon  we  were  joined 
by  a  goodly  company  of  men,  women  and  children. 
The  house  at  which  the  man  and  child  had  stayed  was 
occupied  by  an  old  lady  and  her  grown-up  son.  I  asked 
them  to  tell  me  what  they  knew  of  these  strangers. 
The  old  lady  said  they  came  to  her  house  on  Satur- 
day afternoon,  and  the  man  wanted  to  mend  her  clock, 
which  he  proposed  to  do  if  she  would  keep  him  and 
his  child  over  Sunday.  She  said  she  pitied  the  child, 
and  wanted  her  clock  repaired,  and  allowed  them  to 
stay.  She  had  talked  with  the  little  boy  while  the  man 
was  out,  and  said  to  nie,  "  Mr.  Ross,  he  cannot  be  your 
child :  why,  he  must  be  eight  years  old,  and  has  short 
stiff  hair."  The  man  had  told  her  that  the  child's 
mother  had  died  when  he  was  a  few  months  old,  and 
he  had  the  mother's  picture  with  him. 

Our  doubts  were  now  increased,  but  having  heard 
that  there  had  been  two  boxes  at  the  express  office, 


308  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

marked  N.  B.  Leatham,  Brush's  Mills,  which  had  not 
been  called  for,  we  suspected  possibly  tliey  were  his, 
and  on  asking  the  old  lady  about  them,  she  replied, 
**  He  spoke  about  the  boxes,  and  had  ordered  them  to  be 
sent  back  to  Chateaugay,  about  twenty-four  miles  from 
Brush's  Mills,  nearer  to  St.  Albans."  We  concluded 
that  the  easiest  way  to  find  the  parties  was  to  look  up 
the  boxes,  though  the  citizens  endeavored  to  persuade 
us  to  scour  the  country  for  the  man  and  child:  we  re- 
turned to  Chateaugay.  While  waiting  for  the  train  quite 
a  large  company  of  men,  women  and  children  had  gath- 
ered at  the  station,  and  talked  quietly  among  themselves. 
Some  of  the  men  said,  "  We  don't  believe  there  ever 
was  a  child  stolen;  think  the  story  was  got  up  to  sell 
newspapers  ;  it  makes  a  good  story  for  that."  As  the 
train  approached  I  turned  to  them,  and  said,  "  Gende- 
men,  you  surely  don't  suppose  that  I  would  have  come 
away  up  here  from  Philadelphia  merely  to  get  up  a  sen- 
sation for  the  newspapers.  I  assure  you,  if  you  are  dis- 
posed to  look  up  the  man  and  child  that  has  been 
around  here,  and  the  child  proves  to  be  mine,  you  shall 
have  five  thousand  dollars  reward  for  your  trouble.  If 
we  don't  succeed  in  tracing  the  parties  somewhere,  we 
will  return  and  scour  the  whole  country  until  we  find 
them." 

Arriving  at  Chateaugay  we  found  the  boxes  in  the 
express  office;  and  on  asking  the  hotel  proprietor,  if 
he  had  seen  the  clock-tinker  and  his  boy,  he  replied, 
they  had  been  about  the  village,  and  stayed  over  night 
at  his  house ;  his  name  was  Leatham,  and  the  clock- 
tinker  had  told  him  to  write  the  child's  name  on  the 
register  as  Charley  Ross,  saying  the  children  in  the 


LOST  CHILDREN  RESTORED.  3O9 

village  kept  calling  him  by  that  name,  and  he  should 
do  so  also;  "but,  Mr.  Ross,"  the  inn-keeper  added,  "he 
is  not  your  son;  he  is  fully  eight  years  old."  While  we 
were  talking  over  the  matter,  a  gentleman,  who  over- 
heard our  conversation,  said,  "  That  fellow  is  in  prison 
in  Malone  ;  he  was  put  in  for  ten  days,  for  being  drunk 
and  trying  to  break  open  a  door,  and  his  time  will  ex- 
pire this  afternoon.  The  child  is  at  the  constable's 
house,  about  seven  miles  from  here."  The  landlord 
drove  us  to  see  the  boy ;  and  as  we  approached  the 
house  we  observed  three  or  four  children  playing  in  the 
front  yard.  The  largest  of  them  was  pointed  out  as  the 
reputed  Charley  Ross.  I  replied,  with  some  feeling 
of  chagrin  and  disappointment,  "  Why,  I  cannot  see  what 
people  mean;  they  suffer  themselves  to  be  deceived  by 
becoming  excited,  and  do  not  permit  their  judgment  to 
act."  The  child  was  certainly  eight  years  old,  of  a  dark 
complexion,  sharp  features,  rough  and  coarse  hair,  and 
the  whole  appearance  of  his  face  totally  different  from 
any  picture  I  ever  saw  of  Charley.  In  talking  with 
him,  he  said  his  name  was  Harry  Leatham ;  he  came 
from  Canada. 

We  left  the  child,  feeling  that  with  the  exercise  of  a 
little  judgment  we  should  have  been  spared  great  labor 
and  disappointment.  As  we  returned  we  met  the  child's 
father  on  the  road,  for  he  evidently  was  his  father, 
the  resemblance  being  striking.  He  was  stopped  and 
asked  his  name;  at  first  he  gave  a  false  name,  but 
afterwards  said  his  true  name  was  Napoleon  Bonaparte 
Leatham.  Lieutenant  Beale  asked  him  to  take  off  his 
hat.  There  was  but  little  resemblance  in  him  to  the 
picture  I  had  sent  to  the  lady,  but  which  she  had  tele- 


310  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

graphed  to  me  was  an  exact  likeness  of  him.  When 
asked  why  he  had  his  child  registered  Charley  Ross, 
he  said  he  did  it  when  he  was  drunk,  and  the  children 
on  the  street  had  called  him  by  that  name.  The  fellow 
was  much  alarmed,  turned  pale,  and  trembled  so  that 
he  was  obliged  to  hold  on  to  the  wheel  of  the  wagon  to 
steady  himself.  Wc  left  him  with  an  injunction  that  in 
his  wanderings  he  should  never  use  the  name  of  my  little 
boy.  The  conclusion  we  arrived  at  was,  that  about  ten 
days  before  the  fellow  had  got  to  Brush's  Mills,  he  had 
registered  the  child  as  Charley  Ross,  and  when  he  ar- 
rived there  the  people  believed,  he  certainly  was  my 
child,  and  would  not  permit  themselves  to  change  their 
belief.  Even  after  I  arrived  home,  one  or  two  letters 
were  sent  to  the  Mayor,  saying  that  I  did  not  certainly 
know  my  own  child.  I  know  the  liability  of  strangess 
being  deceived  in  attempting  to  identify  a  full-grown 
person  from  a  picture  or  a  description,  and  the  difficulty 
is  far  greater  in  that  of  a  child;  and  I  have  learned  by 
experience  not  to  rely  on  any  statement  of  identity, 
however  positively  it  may  be  made,  but  as  quietly  and 
as  promptly  as  possible  to  get  definite  information  to 
place  the  matter  beyond  doubt. 


CHAPTER   XI. 

INTERESTING   CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN — INTERVIEW 
WITH    A   SHOWMAN. 

S  long  as  it  was  believed  that  the  abductors 
were  living,  and  likely  to  prove  enemies  to 
society,  no  reward  was  offered  for  the  restora- 
tion of  my  child,  which  was  not  conditioned  upon  the 
arrest  of  the  kidnappers.  It  was  felt  necessary  for  the 
safety  of  the  homes  in  which  little  children  are,  that  the 
villains,  who  had  introduced  into  the  country  the  atro- 
cious crime  of  child  stealing,  should  be  punished,  so 
that  the  deed  would  not  be  repeated.  They  were  ter- 
ribly punished — suddenly  and  violently  their  lives  were 
forfeited  while  in  the  act  of  committing  a  less  heinous 
offense.  The  villains  were  therefore  off  the  record,  and 
we  believing  that  it  was  then  right  and  proper,  a  reward, 
as  stated  in  a  previous  chapter,  was  offered  for  the  res- 
toration of  the  child. 

The  time  specified  in  the  offer  of  that  reward  expired 
on  the  2d  of  January,  without  resulting  in  anything  of 
practical  benefit.  A  number  of  anonymous  letters  were 
received  from  persons  professing  to  have  possession  of 
Charley,  or  claiming  to  know  where  he  was  secreted; 
answers  to  which  were  made  through  the  newspapers, 
but  no  response  was  in  any  case  ever  received. 

With  the  death  of  Mosher  and  Douglas,  the  hope  of 
a  speedy  return  of  our  stolen  child  was  raised  to  the 

(3") 


312  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

highest  pitch.  Indeed,  it  seemed  almost  a  certainty, 
and  we  awaited  his  coming  in  almost  breathless  sus- 
pense. The  quivering  between  hope  and  fear,  the  agon- 
izing doubts,  as  moment  after  moment  went  slowly  by, 
became  almost  beyond  endurance,  and  the  strain  seemed 
more  than  human  strength  could  bear.  To  be  brought 
seemingly  so  near  to  the  recovery  of  our  dear  little  boy, 
and  still  to  be"  left  to  excruciating  uncertainty,  is  terri- 
ble. Yet  with  the  uncertainty  that  hung  over  the  fate 
of  the  child,  vigorous  efforts  continued  to  be  made  to 
discover  the  place  of  his  concealment.  Among  other 
measures  that  were  adopted,  in  the  hope  of  leading  to 
that  result,  was  that  of  preparing  a  circular  letter,  with 
a  photographic  picture  of  Charley  attached  on  the 
upper  margin.     This  letter  is  as  follows: 

Dear  Sir. — The  aljfiuction  of  Charles  Brewster  Ross  from  Ger- 
mantown,  on  July  1st,  1874,  has  awakened  universal  sympathy  and 
much  active  effort  in  all  parts  of  the  country. 

Since  the  killing  of  the  burglars  Mosher  and  Douglas,  (who  were, 
without  doubt,  the  alxiuctors  of  the  child,)  at  Bay  Ridge,  Long  Island, 
on  December  14th,  1874,  a  reward  of  ^5,ocx>  has  been  offered  for  his 
return,  but  thus  far  without  result. 

The  object  of  this  communication  is  to  ask  you  personally  to  interest 
yourself  in  the  search  for  the  missing  child,  and  to  induce,  if  possible, 
the  constables  connected  with  your  office  to  examine  thoroughly  all 
secluded  places,  caves,  cabins,  suspicious  houses,  vessels,  canal-boaLs, 
and  any  other  localities  in  your  jurisdiction  where  it  might  be  possible 
to  conceal  a  child. 

Here  follow  descriptions  of  the  child,  the  abductors, 
the  horse,  wagon  and  boat  used  by  them,  the  latter 
found  at  Bay  Ridge ;  after  which  are  given  facts  ob- 
tained from  letters  written  by  the  abductors,  and  from 
other  sources. 

After  leaving  Palmer  and  Richmond  Streets,  Philadelphia,  about  six 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  3I3 

o'clock,  P.  M.,  July  ist,  the  abductors  drove  toward  the  city  of  Trenton, 
N.  J.,  through  which  they  said  they  passed  on  the  night  of  July  2d,  and 
on  Bridge  Street  dropped  the  boy's  hat — a  broad-rimmed  unbleached 
Panama,  with  black  ribbon,  and  without  binding.  After  this,  they  may 
have  driven  toward  some  one  of  the  streams  of  water  emptying  into 
Raritan  or  Newark  Bay,  or  possibly  as  far  as  Newark,  but  this  is  veiy 
uncertain.  The  abductors  returned  to  Philadelphia  July  3d,  where  they 
mailed  letters  during  the  month.  In  August,  letters  were  mailed  from 
New  York  City,  and  occasionally  from  other  points,  as  Rondout,  and 
subsequently  from  New  Haven,  New  Brunswick,  New  York,  and  Phila- 
delphia, down  to  November  20th. 

There  is  good  reason  to  believe  that  these  men  were  in  a  row-boat  on 
the  Hudson,  at  and  near  Rondout,  for  two  days  about  August  27th. 

A  letter  from  them,  dated  September  23d,  and  i^ost-marked  New 
Haven,  stated  that  Charley  had  been  suffering  from  stoppage  of  urine, 
and  that  medicine  had  been  obtained  by  his  custodians,  which  relieved 
him.  (inquiry  of  physicians  or  druggists  in  your  neighborhood,  with 
reference  to  this  statement,  might  lead  to  a  clue.) 

The  abductors  probably  made  the  alterations  to  the  boat,  above 
referred  to,  on  the  Hackensack  River,  about  October  12th. 

It  is  not  known  precisely  when  they  began  living  on  the  water,  or 
whether  they  ever  had  the  boy  on  the  boat.  They  may  have  delivered 
him  to  confederates  after  first  leaving  Philadelphia. 

N.  B. — Information  as  to  the  route  taken  by  the  abductors  after  leav- 
ing Philadelphia  with  the  boy,  is  derived  entirely  from  their  letters,  and 
hence  may  be  wholly  incorrect;  they  may  have  gone  in  an  entirely 
different  direction. 

In  view  of  the  enormity  and  heartlessness  of  this  crime,  and  the  incal- 
culable suffering  it  has  caused  and  is  still  causing  the  parents  and  other 
relatives  of  the  missing  boy,  I  appeal  to  you  for  aid.  The  protracted 
and  terrible  uncertainty  experienced  by  the  parents  of  the  child  as  to  his 
fate  cannot  be  described.  To  be  assured  even  of  his  death  would  create 
in  them  a  feeling  of  resignation ;  but  not  to  know  whether  he  is  living 
or  dead — whether,  if  living,  he  is  kindly  cared  for  or  the  reverse — o 
whether  he  is  sick  or  in  health — constantly  oppresses  them  with  a  tor- 
turing anxiety  that  is  well  nigh  unendurable.  But  it  is  needless  to 
dwell  on  this  point.  I  am  convinced  that  your  sympathies  are  awakened 
in  behalf  of  this  family,  and  on  that  account  believe  that  you  will  render 
all  the  assistance  in  your  power. 

In  addition  to  the  mode  of  action  already  suggested,  would  it  be  too 
14 


314  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

much  to  ask  of  you  to  disseminate  judiciously  the  facts  set  forth  in  this 
letter,  and  to  use  your  utmost  exertions  to  induce  as  many  persons  as 
possible  to  join  in  the  proposed  search,  and  in  the  investigation  of  such 
circumstances  in  your  town  or  neighborhood  as  may  appear  likely  to 
lead  to  the  whereabouts  of  the  child  at  any  time  since  his  abduction. 

A  reward  of  $5,000  will  be  paid  to  any  person  who  will  return  the 
boy,  or  who  may  give  information  leading  to  his  recovery. 

Any  information  you  may  obtain  should  be  sent  to  the  undersigned, 
or  to  Geo.  W.  Walling,  Superintendent  of  Police,  300  Mulberry  Street, 
New  York  City.  Respectfully,  Youis, 

W.  S.  Stokley, 

January  26th,  187S'  Mayor  of  Philadelphia, 

These  circulars,  numbering  about  3000,  were  sent  to 
the  justices  of  the  peace  in  all  the  towns  and  villages 
in  Connecticut,  Rhode  Island  and  New  Jersey,  in  Long 
Island,  and  in  the  counties  in  the  State  of  New  York 
bordering  on  the  Hudson  river.  They  were  also  sent 
to  evciy  Methodist  minister,  and  to  a  large  number  of 
the  Catholic  clergy  in  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  with  a 
special  request  to  those  who  visited  the  most  secluded 
parts  of  the  State,  to  read  it  to  their  congregations  and 
make  an  appeal  to  the  people  to  interest  them  in  the 
search  for  the  stolen  child. 

The  writing  of  so  many  letters,  and  addressing  so 
large  a  number  of  circulars,  involved  an  immense 
amount  of  labor;  and  while  nothing  so  far  has  resulted 
from  it,  yet  so  many  responses  have  come  back  full  of 
the  liveliest  sympathy,  and  expressing  the  most  earnest 
desire  to  aid  in  the  cause  of  humanity,  that  we  do  not 
feel  that  our  time  and  labor  have  been  wholly  lost,  and 
are  not  without  hope  that  this  effort  may  yet  be  the 
means  of  unravelling  this  profound  secret. 

In  examining  the  laws  of  our  State  relating  to  kid- 
napping, it  was  found  that  the  offense  was  defined  to 
be  a  misdemeanor,  and  that  no  punishment  was  pro- 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  315 

vided  adequate  to  the  crime  of  stealing  and  concealing 
a  child  for  the  purpose  of  extorting  money.  As  no 
case  of  kidnapping  for  that  object  had  ever  occurred  in 
our  country,  its  commission  seems  never  to  have  been 
anticipated.  A  supplement  was  now  added  to  the 
former  act  of  Assembly,  making  the  crime  a  felony, 
and  imposing  severe  penalties  on  this  offense.  While 
the  bill  was  pending- in  the  Legislature,  I  wrote  to  Sen- 
ator Dunkel  of  this  city,  who  offered  the  bill  to  the 
Senate,  for  a  copy,  and  also  for  copies  of  any  other 
papers  relating  to  it.  His  reply  to  my  letter  expresses 
so  much  good  feeling  that  I  take  pleasure  in  giving  it 
publicity  at  this  time: 

Senate  Chamber,  Harrisburg,  January  18,  187^. 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir  : — Upon  my  arrival  here  from  Philadel- 
phia this  evening  I  received  yours  of  the  i6th  inst. 

I  will  send  you  a  printed  copy  of  the  bill  probably  to-morrow  or 
Wednesday.  It  is  now  before  the  Senate  Judiciary  Committee  and  will 
be  reported  to-morrow;  at  least  so  I  am  informed  by  the  Chairman 
of  the  Committee  (Mr.  Strang). 

I  shall  be  pleased  to  forward  you  anything  bearing  on  the  subject, 
and  shall  be  only  too  glad  if  my  bill  will  be  the  means  of  accomplishing 
that  which  so  many  other  means  have  failed  to  do,  viz. :  The  return  of 
your  stolen  boy  to  your  distressed  home.  I  am  not  a  father,  still  I  can 
understand,  in  some  degree,  the  amount  of  suffering  endured  by  yourself 
and  wife.  Had  I  known  that  your  place  of  business  was  so  near  to  my 
ofiice  I  should  certainly  have  called  on  you,  and  explained  in  detail  the 
provisions  of  the  bill. 

I  think  it  will  pass  both  Houses  by  a  unanimous  vote  before  another 
week  goes  by.  I  shall  be  in  the  city  on  Friday  evening  and  will  be 
pleased  to  call  on  you  or  have  you  call  on  me,  should  you  find  it  con- 
venient to  do  so. 

Hoping,  dear  sir,  that  the  darkest  hours  in  your  long  days  of  suffering 
are  passed,  and  that  your  home  may  soon  be  brightened  by  the  return  of 
your  darling,  I  have  the  honor  to  be 

Your  very  obedient  servant, 

A.  K.  Dunkel. 


3l6  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

The  law  was  passed  unanimously  by  both  branches 
of  the  Legislature,  and  approved  by  the  Governor  of 
the  State,  February  25,  1875. 

On  the  same  day  the  Mayor  of  the  City  issued  the 
following  Proclamation : 

Mayor's  Office,  City  of  Philadelphia,  February  2j,  iSjs- 

To  all  whom  it  may  concern,  I  hereby  give  notice  that  the  Legislature 
of  Pennsylvania  has  passed  an  act  which  this  day  received  the  approval 
of  the  Governor,  entitled,  "A  supplement  to  the  act  approved  March 
31st,  1869,  entitled  an  act  to  consolidate,  revise  and  amend  the  penal 
laws  of  this  Commonwealth,  further  defining  the  offense  of  kidnapping, 
and  affixing  additional  penalties  thereto." 

Said  act  provides.  First :  That  if  any  person  shall  maliciously,  either 
by  force  or  fraud,  lead,  take  or  carry  away,  or  decoy,  or  entice  away, 
any  child  under  the  age  of  ten  years,  from  its  parent  or  parents,  or  any 
other  person  having  the  lawful  charge  or  care  of  such  child  or  the 
possession  of  such  child,  with  the  intent  to  extort  money  or  any  valua- 
ble thing  from  the  parent  or  any  other  person,  for  the  restoration  of  such 
child,  every  such  person  shall  be  guilty  of  a  felony,  and  upon  conviction 
thereof  shall  be  sentenced  to  pay  a  fine  not  exceeding  ten  thousand  dol- 
lars and  to  undergo  an  imprisonment,  by  separate  and  solitary  confine- 
ment at  labor,  for  a  period  not  exceeding  twenty-five  years. 

Second,  If  any  person,  within  this  Commonwealth,  shall  knowingly 
conceal,  harbor  or  detain,  or  assist  in  concealing,  harboring  or  detaining 
any  such  child,  so  taken,  carried  away  or  enticed  as  aforesaid,  either 
within  or  without  this  Commonwealth,  every  such  person  shall  be  guilty 
of  a  felony,  and  upon  conviction  thereof,  be  sentenced  to  pay  a  fine  not 
exceeding  five  thousand  dollars,  and  to  undergo  an  imprisonment,  by 
separate  and  solitary  confinement  at  labor,  not  exceeding  fifteen  years. 
And, 

Third,  It  holds  out  to  any  person  or  persons  now  having  in  their 
possession  any  child  so  taken  or  carried  away,  the  following  inducements 
to  bring  it  into  this  State  and  surrender  it :  Provided,  That  this  act  shall 
not  apply  to  the  detaining  or  concealing  of  any  child  taken  or  carried 
away  before  the  passage  of  this  act,  where  the  person  or  persons  so 
harboring  or  concealing  shall,  within  thirty  days  after  the  passage  of  this 
act,  surrender  up  such  child  to  the  custody  of  the  nearest  magistrate  or 


CASES    OF   TRACED    CHILDREN.  317 

justice  of  the  peace,  or  to  the  sheriff  of  any  county  within  this  Common- 
wealth. 

This  immunity  will  expire  on  the  25th  day  of  March,  1875. 

William  S.  Stokley, 
Mayor  of  the  City  of  Philadelphia. 

To  the  foregoing  proclamation  I  added  the  follow- 
ing : 

The  above  act  having  been  passed  by  the  Legislature  of  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania  and  been  approved  by  the  Governor,  is  now  in  full  force. 

The  last  clause  applies  to  the  recovery  of  my  son  Charles  Brewster 
Ross,  abducted  from  the  vicinity  of  my  residence,  Germantown,  Penn- 
sylvania, on  the  1st  of  July,  1874. 

I  am  satisfied  that  both  of  the  abductors  were  killed  at  Bay  Ridge, 
Long  Island,  on  the  morning  of  December  14th,  1874.  And  now,  in 
addition  to  the  immunity  from  punishment  guaranteed  by  the  above  law, 
I  will  give  satisfactory  assurance  to  any  person  having  custody  of  the 
child,  or  who  shall  be  the  medium  through  whom  he  shall  be  restored 
to  me,  that  I  will  pay  whatever  sum  of  money  is  required,  up  to  ^5,000, 
for  expenses  or  otherwise  in  bringing  about  his  restoration. 

Christian  K.  Ross. 

The  Mayor's  proclamation,  with  my  proposition,  was 
published  in  all  the  leading  newspapers  of  the  principal 
cities  in  Pennsylvania,  New  York,  and  New  Jersey,  and 
was  copied  by  nearly  all  the  papers  throughout  the 
Middle  and  Eastern  States,  thus  giving  it  the  widest 
publicity. 

This  immunity  from  punishment  for  thirty  days,  so 
freely  granted  by  our  Legislature,  to  any  person  having 
the  custody  of  the  child,  and  who  would  restore  him 
within  the  specified  time,  added  to  the  inducement  of 
the  reward  offered,  once  more  stimulated  our  expecta- 
tions to  the  highest  pitch,  that  Charley  would  soon 
be  returned.  Anxiously  did  we  wait  for  the  arrival 
of  every  mail,  and  nervously  open  every  letter,  hoping 
that  the  gladsome  intelligence  would  be  communicated 


3l8  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

from  some  quarter  that  the  stolen  one  had  been  recov- 
ered. Day  after  day  passed  away,  yet  no  intelligence  of 
the  child  was  received;  and,  as  the  limited  time  in  which 
the  last  clause  of  the  recent  act  of  the  Legislature  held 
good  was  about  to  expire,  we  began  to  fear  that  nothing 
but  disappointment  would  result  from  this  extraordin- 
ary effort  to  solve  the  mystery.  Truly,  when  the  25th 
day  of  March — the  last  of  the  thirty  days — ^passed  away 
without  getting  any  intelligence  of  our  darling  child, 
our  hearts  were  sick,  and  for  the  time  we  were  almost 
ready  to  abandon  all  hope  of  ever  again  seeing  him,  or 
of  knowing  what  had  become  him. 

It  seemed  that  everything  that  ingenuity,  persever- 
ance, energy,  official,  and  individual  co-operation  could 
do  to  restore  the  child,  had  been  done.  The  two  prin- 
cipals in  the  heartless,  cruel  abduction  had  paid  the  pen- 
alty of  another  crime  with  their  lives;  but  their  violent 
and  sudden  death  only  obscured  the  secret,  and  in- 
creased the  difficulty  of  the  search;  yet  there  was 
reserved  for  us  a  still  more  bitter  draught  to  drink — 
prepared  by  the  fiendish  cruelty  of  those  with  whom 
the  abductors  entrusted  the  child,  and  who  continued 
to  suppress  the  knowledge  of  his  fate.  It  is  even  more 
savagely  wicked  than  the  original  crime  itself. 

Yet,  with  the  uncertainty  which  enshrouds  the  case, 
we  have  always  felt  that  it  would  be  wrong  ever  to  say 
that  all  hope  is  abandoned ;  for  hope  will  cling  to  every 
straw  that  the  doubt  of  an  unknown  fate  continues  to 
throw  on  the  stream  of  time ;  and  with  energy,  some- 
times flagging  and  again  buoyant,  we  resumed  the 
search,  and  examined  everything  reported  to  us  which 
seemed  to  have  any  connection  with  the  case,  not  know- 


CASES    OF   TRACED    CHILDREN.  3I9 

ing  at  what  time,  or  in  what  way,  the  hard  problem 
would  be  solved.  It  may  be  reserved  for  some  Provi- 
dence to  discover  the  child,  just  such  as  disclosed 
the  whereabouts  of  the  brigands;  and  while  we  con- 
tinue to  watch  closely  all  that  transpires  near  at  hand, 
we  do  not  neglect  to  examine  everything  reported  at 
a  distance.  We  cannot  tell  what  apparently  trifling 
thing  may  lead  us  to  the  result  so  much  desired. 
Providence  in  the  accomplishment  of  His  purposes 
works  in  wonderfully  diversified  ways,  and  oftentimes 
selects  the  most  unlikely  and  unpromising  instru- 
ments to  develop  His  inscrutable  designs. 

Our  time  and  attention,  from  this  period  to  the  pre- 
sent time,  has  been  chiefly  occupied  in  tracing  children  in 
different  parts  of  the  country,  who  were  supposed  to  be 
Charley  Ross;  and  scarcely  a  day  passes  without  a 
report  of  one  or  more  children  who  are  thought  to  be 
the  missing  child.  By  the  immense  number  of  pictures 
of  different  kinds  which  have  been  distributed  through- 
out the  country,  Charley's  face  has  become  so  familiar 
that  whenever  there  is  a  child  who  bears  a  slight  resem- 
blance to  it,  in  charge  of  persons  not  well  known,  or  to 
whom  any  suspicious  circumstances  are  attached,  we 
hear  of  him  either  by  telegraph  or  by  letter. 

Among  the  most  difficult  to  trace  satisfactorily,  are 
children  who  have  assumed,  or  to  whom  has  been  given, 
the  name  of  Charley  Ross.  Many  instances  of  this 
kind  have  occurred,  not  only  in  the  large  cities,  but  in 
far  distant  places.  Singular  as  it  may  seem,  even  little 
children  in  our  city  have  heard  so  much  about  Char- 
ley Ross,  that  whenever  they  see  another  child  resem- 
bling the  picture  which  they  so  well  know,  they  are 


320  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

ready  to  call  out,  "  There  is  Charley  Ross."  An  in 
stance  of  this  kind  came  under  my  notice  a  short  time 
ago:  a  lady  in  passing  through  one  of  the  small  streets 
of  the  city  observed  a  little  fellow  about  the  age  of 
Charley,  with  long  flaxen  curls,  full  round  face,  and 
brown  eyes,  and  heard  him  called  "Charley  Ross." 
At  once  she  assumed  that  he  was  my  little  son,  and 
reported  where  he  could  be  seen.  On  going  to  the 
house  I  found  the  people  had  recently  moved  into  the 
neighborhood,  and,  while  talking  with  the  mother,  a 
little  fellow  ran  by  me,  followed  by  a  troop  of  other 
children,  singing  out  at  the  top  of  their  voices,  "Char- 
ley Ross !  Charley  Ross  ! "  The  child's  mother  looked 
confused,  and  said,  "  Those  children  annoy  us  very 
much;  they  will  call  our  little  boy  Charley  Ross;  and 
frequently  when  I  am  with  the  child  on  the  street,  I 
have  been  asked  if  the  little  boy  with  me  is  not  the 
missing  child.  His  middle  name  is  Ross,  and  we  usu- 
ally call  him  by  that  name."  I  told  her  the  child 
resembled  my  little  boy  slightly,  and  to  prevent  her 
being  annoyed  again  by  persons  asking  her  questions 
about  the  child,  I  gave  her  a  certificate,  stating  that  I 
had  seen  her  child  and  that  he  was  not  my  son. 

A  short  time  ago  two  little  children,  a  boy  and  girl, 
who  had  wandered  from  their  homes  and  were  picked 
up  on  the  street  at  night,  were  brought  to  a  station- 
house;  an  officer  asked  the  boy,  "What's  your  name?" 
He  replied,  "  Charley  Ross."  Turning  to  the  girl,  he 
asked  her,  "  What  is  your  name  ?"  She  replied, "  Char- 
ley Ross  too."  Whether  these  children  supposed  all 
lost  children  must  be  called  Charley  Ross,  or  whether 
they  thought  that  by  assuming  the  name  they  would 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  32 1 

secure  kind  treatment  from  the  officer,  I  do  not  know. 
These  cases  in  the  cities  were  soon  disposed  of;  not  so, 
however,  those  occuring  in  the  country.  A  case  of  this 
kind,  which  I  will  now  relate,  occupied  much  labor  and 
correspondence  before  the  lady  having  possession  of 
the  child — reported  to  us  by  herself — could  be  con- 
vinced that  he  was  not  our  little  boy.  Indeed,  we  are 
still  unable  to  understand  how  the  child  could  answer 
correctly  so  many  questions,  and  speak  of  things  con- 
nected with  our  home,  with  which  none  were  acquainted 
except  members  of  our  family.  By  permission  of  the 
lady  a  few  extracts  from  her  letters  are  given,  without 
however  mentioning  her  name  or  place  of  residence. 
The  first  letter  I  received  from  her,  is  dated  October  20, 

1875.- 

Christian  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — Pardon  the  liberty  of  this  intrusion, 
if  an  intrusion  it  proves  to  be.  I  obtained  out  of  a  public  institution 
yesterday,  a  little  boy  whose  name  is  Charley  Ross.  He  seems  so 
bewildered  and  is  so  frightened  that  he  hardly  knows  who  are  his  right 
parents.  He  says  he  has  travelled  a  great  deal.  Since  he  has  been 
with  me  I  have  gained  his  confidence,  and  he  has  told  me  the  whole 
story  of  his  having  been  kidnapped ;  about  riding  in  a  wagon,  and  his 
brother  Walter  striking  one  of  the  men  on  his  nose  or  mouth.  He  was 
committed  to  the  institution  under  the  name  of  Charley  Ross,  July  18, 
1875,  etc.  He  was  put  into  the  institution  nominally  for  striking  a  little 
girl  with  a  stone ;  but  the  magistrate  says  it  was  really  done  to  take  the 
child  from  the  influence  of  a  bad  woman  who  had  him  in  charge.  His 
hair  is  light  and  soft,  and  cut  very  short ;  but  he  says  when  he  was  with 
his  right  mother  he  had  long  curls;  he  also  says  he  is  eight  years  old, 
but  is  small  for  that  age.  When  he  was  taken  from  home  his  mother  was 
sick  and  away  from  home.  There  are  a  great  many  more  facts  I  could 
but  will  not  now  mention.  Now,  Mr.  Ross,  if  you  think  the  above 
sufficient  to  convince  you  that  he  is  your  child,  come  to  see  him  ;  if  not, 
say  nothing  about  it,  as  he  is  such  a  sweet,  interesting  child  I  would  like 

to  keep  him.  Signed, . 

14* 


322  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

While  there  are  many  things  stated  in  this  letter 
which  seemed  to  indicate  that  the  child  was  really  our 
Charley,  yet  there  are  others  said  which  made  it  look 
impossible.  Of  the  former,  his  name  Charley  Ross  ; 
the  story  that  he  was  kidnapped ;  that  he  was  taken 
away  in  a  wagon  with  his  brother  Walter ;  he  is  de- 
scribed as  having  hair  of  a  light  color,  soft  and  curly ; 
when  he  was  taken  from  his  home,  his  mother  was  sick 
and  away.  On  receipt  of  this  letter  I  wrote  the  lady 
asking  her  to  send  me  a  picture,  and  find  out  from  the 
child  all  he  could  tell  of  his  life ;  and  also  gave  her 
questions  to  ask  him  to  test  his  memory.  I  received  a 
reply  dated  the  29th  of  October,  1865,  from  which  I 
make  a  few  extracts,  principally  of  such  things  as  the 
child  said  which  were  correct : 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir  : — Your  favor  of  the  25th  inst.  was  duly 
received  and  contents  noted.  I  have  done  as  you  requested,  in  regard 
to  questioning  CHARLEY,  as  far  as  possible;  but  it  is  exceedingly  diffi- 
cult to  get  him  to  say  anything  about  Philadelphia — he  seems  to  dread  to 
think  of  it,  and  I  can  only  get  him  to  speak  of  it  when  he  is  earnestly 
playing  in  the  house.  I  gave  him  a  box  of  toys  with  churches,  trees, 
houses,  horses,  men,  etc.,  etc.,  and  to-day  he  built  Philadelphia  where 
he  lived,  and  showed  my  daughter  and  me  every  thing  about  his  home, 
and  |)ersonated  his  brothers,  sisters,  etc.  He  says :  "  Here  is  Uncle  Joe  ; 
there  is  me  going  up  to  him  to  get  candy.  There  is  Walter  and  Annie, 
with  a  yellow  dress  on;  there  is  Aunt  Lewis  and  Cousin  Frank  walking 
on  the  railroad ;  and  here  are  all  the  trees,  with  chickens  on  them  and 
me  throwing  at  them  ;  in  the  back  yard  is  Uncle  Joe  and  all  his  horses  ; 
the  house  is  the  second  from  the  corner  of  the  street,  on  the  old  lane 
that's  been  there  twenty  years — Washington  Lane."  I  asked  him,  when 
alone,  who  gave  him  candy  at  Uncle  Joe's.  He  said  "  Why,  he  did  him- 
self." •  When  asked,  «  How  did  yougo  to  Philadelphia?"  he  replied,  "On 
the  Philadelphia  train,  and  sometimes  in  an  omnibus."  He  speaks  of  a 
Sophia,  sometimes  as  his  sister  and  at  other  times  as  his  cousin.  He 
says  he  was  in  a  Catholic  school  at  one  time,  and  his  name  was  Rossey 
there. 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  323 

The  lady  then  writes  of  the  child  as  talking  about  a 
circus  and  circus  people;  of  his  being  in  a  cave  where 
men  were  chained;  and  closes  by  saying : 

The  picture  I  send  you  is  a  cheap  thing  taken  in  a  hurry.  If  you 
wish,  I'll  have  a  bust  picture  taken.  The  picture  you  sent  me  of 
y  our  child  resembles  him  a  great  deal  more  than  the  one  I  send  you. 

The  first  evening  he  came  we  thought  he  had  blue  eyes,  on  account 
of  having  such  a  fair  skin ;  but,  on  looking  again,  he  has  dark  soft  brown 
eyes,  and  a  beautiful,  clear  complexion.  We  discovered,  before  receiv- 
ing your  description  of  Charley,  that  his  hair  was  darker  at  the  roots ; 
but  thought  that  it  was  because  it  had  been  colored.  He  is  timid,  shy 
with  strangers.  Now,  Mr.  Ross,  if  there  is  anything  in  this  letter  that 
would  justify  your  coming  to  see  the  child,  please  let  me  know  before 
you  come  so  that  I  can  prepare  him  to  see  you,  for  I  know  he  will  be 
very  much  frightened,  etc.,  etc.  Charley  is  well  and  as  happy  as  the 
day  is  long,  and  says  he  wants  to  stay  with  me  until  he  is  a  man. 
Yours  respectfully, 
Signed,  . 

Although  the  picture  sent  was  a  tin  type  and  a  very 
poor  one,  yet,  at  a  glance,  we  all  decided  that  the  child 
was  not  our  Charley.  Still  there  were  so  many  things 
stated  which  are  correct,  that  we  wrote  again  to  the 
lady  we  were  unable  to  understand  how  the  child 
could  tell  names  so  correctly,  and  relate  things  which 
no  one  outside  of  the  family  could  possibly  know ;  and 
asked  her  to  send  us  a  photograph  as  soon  as  it  could 
be  taken,  and  also  to  write  of  any  other  points  in  the 
child's  conversation  which  might  bear  on  his  identity. 
In  the  last  letter  the  child  speaks  of  his  Uncle  Joe,  his 
.'lunt  Lewis,  his  cousin  Frank,  his  sister  Sophia,  of 
Washington  Lane ;  and  what  seemed  to  us  more  strik- 
ing than  all  else,  he  says,  while  playing  with  some  toys, 
•'  Here  are  all  the  trees,  with  chickens  on  them  and  me 
throwing  at  them."  During  the  summer  in  which 
Charley  was  stolen  a  brood  of  chickens  selected  one 


324  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

of  the  evergreens  in  front  of  the  house  as  a  roosting- 
place,  and  the  children  were  in  the  habit  of  throwing 
sticks  and  stones  at  them  to  drive  them  away.  And 
again  he  speaks  of  his  Uncle  Joe  being  in  the  back  yard 
with  all  his  horses,  also  perfectly  correct. 

As  stated  above,  I  have  made  selections  from  the 
letters  of  such  things  as  seemed  to  indicate  that  the 
child  was  our  little  boy.  Many  other  things  which  he 
said  were  not  correct,  yet  there  was  enough  stated  cor- 
rectly to  make  us  extremely  cautious  as  to  our  decision. 

I  wrote  again  to  the  lady,  and  explained  that  all  the 
family  concurred  in  the  belief  that  the  child  in  whom 
she  was  interested  was  not  ours ;  but  we  were  unable 
to  account  for  the  correctness  of  much  of  the  story,  and 
gave  her  some  more  questions  to  ask  him. 

On  the  17th  of  November,  1875,  she  wrote  as  fol- 
lows : 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — Your  favor  of  the  8th  inst.  was 
received.  I  have  tried  twice,  since  writing  my  last  letter  to  you,  to  get 
a  good  picture,  but  am  not  wholly  successful.  The  inclosed  are  the  best 
I  have ;  but  are  not  perfect  as  they  might  be,  etc.,  etc.  In  answer  to 
the  question  you  asked,  Charley  said,  **  His  ma  was  away  from  home 
sick,  and  one  of  his  sisters  was  with  her ;"  but  he  does  not  say  where 
they  were.  I  would  like  you  to  come  to  a  conclusion  about  it,  for  it 
makes  me  feel  uneasy  about  him;  for  if  he  is  your  child,  he  may  be  talfen 
away  from  me. 

Mr.  Ross,  you  may  think  I  am  working  for  the  reward  ;  but,  sir,  my 
motive  is  a  much  higher  and  nobler  one.  If  he  is  your  child  I  shall  be 
at  liberty  to  tell  you  how  I  gained  possession  of  him,  as  you,  no  doubt, 
think  it  strange  that  I  should  write  you  immediately  after  getting  him. 
If  he  is  yours,  it  will  be  a  providential  thing  if  I  can  restore  him  to  you ; 
for  the  ways  of  Providence  are  wise.  Even  should  he  prove  not  to.be, 
as  I  think  he  is,  'tis  truly  a  most  remarkable  case,  etc.,  etc. 
Yours  respectfully. 
Signed,  . 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  32$ 

On  receipt  of  the  photographs  sent  to  us,  we  were 
fully  convinced  the  child  was  not  ours,  and  wrote  the 
lady  to  that  effect ;  at  the  same  tirfie  saying  it  was  cer- 
tainly the  most  remarkable  case  that  had  been  brought 
to  our  notice.  Subsequently  we  received  several  letters 
from  the  same  person,  giving  additional  conversations 
she  had  with  the  child.  In  one  of  her  letters  she  stated 
she  was  still  inclined  to  believe  the  child  with  her  was 
ours;  and,  in  order  to  satisfy  her,  a  letter  was  written 
to  a  gentleman  residing  in  the  same  city,  asking  him 
to  investigate  the  matter;  photographs  of  Mrs.  Ross, 
Walter,  and  myself,  were  also  sent  to  him,  to  find  out 
whether  the  child  could  recognize  any  of  the  pictures 
when  placed  among  a  number  of  others ;  but  he  failed 
to  identify  any  one  of  them.  It  was  also  ascertained 
that  the  boy  was  more  than  eight  years  old. 

This  was  certainly  a  very  wonderful  case;  so  many 
sayings  of  the  child  might  have  been  those  of  Charley; 
his  description  corresponded  so  nearly  with  that  of  our 
little  boy,  and  the  place  from  which  the  lady  had  ob- 
tained him,  all  led  us  to  believe  that  at  length  we  had 
found  our  missing  child;  but  as  soon  as  the  first  picture 
reached  us,  we  were  satisfied  that  it  was  not  so. 

Of  the  many  children  I  have  seen,  no  one  bears  so 
striking  a  resemblance  to  our  little  boy  as  a  boy  found 
near  Schuyler  Falls,  New  York.  I  am  not  surprised 
that  the  persons  in  the  neighborhood  were  enthusiastic 
in  the  belief  that  they  really  had  Charley,  and  I  truly 
sympathized  with  them  in  their  disappointment,  when 
they  were  convinced  they  were  wrong.  The  following 
letter  was  written  to  the  Mayor,  in  substance  almost 
identical  with  hundreds  of  others  which  have  been 
received : 


326  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Schuyler  Falls,  August  3^  iSyS' 
Hon.  W.  S.  Stokley.— Z>^ar  Sir:—\  know  of  a  child  who  answers 
the  description  of  Charle^  Brewster  Ross,  son  of  C.  K.  Ross.  The 
child's  hair,  eyes,  skin  and  age,  in  fact  the  whole  appearance  is  the  same. 
The  people  who  claim  this  child  are  a  man  and  woman.  The  man  has 
the  appearance  of  a  half-breed  Indian,  and  the  woman  is  of  a  dark  com- 
plexion. 

They  give  conflicting  accounts  of  where  they  came  from.  The  man 
said  from  one  place,  the  woman  from  another.  I  am  satisfied  this  child 
is  Charley  Ross.        Address, 

James  Kelly  or  Charles  Kelly, 
SchuyUr  FallSy  Clinton  Co,^  N.  Y. 

In  addition  to  this  letter  the  following  note  was  re- 
ceived by  Mrs.  Ross : 

Mrs.  Ross. — Dear  Madam. — Please  come  yourself  to  see  the  child 

near  Schuyler  Falls.     A  mother  will  know  her  child  where  other  persons 

will  not ;  and  a  child  will  be  very  likely  to  know  its  mother.     I  am  a 

stranger  to  you,  but  feel  deeply  with  you  in  the  loss  of  your  darling  boy. 

Signed,  A  Mother. 

Schuyler  Falls  is  a  small  village  in  northern  New 
York,  about  thirteen  miles  west  from  Plattsburg,  the 
nearest  telegraph  station.  Efforts  were  made  to  get 
further  information  by  means  of  the  Western  Union 
Telegraph.  Mr.  Kelly,  the  writer  of  the  letter  to  the 
Mayor,  was  brought  to  the  telegraph  office  in  Platts- 
burg,  and  a  conversation  entered  into  with  him,  without, 
however,  leading  to  satisfactory  results.  The  child 
could  not  be  brought  to  Plattsburg,  and  there  seemed 
no  other  way  of  deciding  the  matter  than  to  go  and  see 
the  boy.  I  went  to  New  York  the  same  night,  and 
took  the  first  train  for  Plattsburg  on  the  following  morn- 
ing, via  the  Hudson  River  railroad.  On  my  arrival  at 
White  Hall,  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Champlain,  I  found 
that  my  visit  was  anticipated,  the  people  having  heard 
of  the  boy  at  Schuyler  Falls,  supposed  to  be  my  Char- 


CASES   OF   TRACED    CHILDREN.  '  32/ 

LEY.  The  same  interest  was  manifested  here  as  had 
been  elsewhere,  when  it  became  known  what  was  the 
object  of  my  mission.  I  arrived  in  Plattsburg  about 
four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  found  Mr.  Kelly  wait- 
ing for  me.  After  driving  about  three  hours  we  ap- 
proached the  house  where  the  child  was.  It  is  in  an 
isolated  place,  about  two  miles  from  the  village  of 
Schuyler  Falls,  well  adapted  for  the  concealment  of 
any  person  or  thing ;  near  the  house  was  a  small  field 
of  corn  in  which  the  little  boy  was  playing.  I  called  to 
him;  as  soon  as  he  heard  a  strange  voice  he  ran  towards 
the  house.  Quickly  the  thought  passed  through  my 
mind  that  the  little  fellow  looked  very  much  like  my 
Charley.  On  entering  the  house,  I  said  to  the  woman, 
"  I  have  come  to  see  this  child.  He  looks  very  much 
like  my  Charley,  but  is  not  he."  I  took  the  child 
up,  caressed  him,  and  tried  to  induce  him  to  talk,  but 
he  would  not  say  anything.  In  every  respect,  except 
his  expression  and  in  the  formation  of  the  lower  part 
of  his  face,  he  resembled  our  little  boy.  His  complex- 
ion, light  curly  hair,  brown  eyes,  size  and  roundness  of 
form,  all  closely  resembled  Charley's,  and  I  could  not 
refrain  from  taking  him  in  my  arms.  The  woman  said 
he  was  her  child,  and  that  she  came  from  the  interior 
of  the  State  of  New  York,  and  her  husband  from  Canada. 
While  talking  with  the  woman,  the  father  came  into  the 
house — a  French  Canadian,  with  a  decided  mark  of 
Indian  blood.  He  was  astonished  to  see  so  many  per- 
sons; for  very  soon  after  I  got  into  the  house,  the 
farmers  living  in  the  neighborhood  came  in  numbers  to 
hear  my  decision  regarding  the  identity  of  the  child. 
They  all  were  greatly  disappointed,  and  said  they  had 


328  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

hoped  he  was  my  son,  not  only  for  my  sake,  but  also 
for  the  child's,  who  was  having  a  very  miserable  home. 
The  woman  said  that  two  gentlemen  from  Burlington, 
Vermont,  had  been  to  see  the  child  the  day  before,  and 
told  her  of  a  child  who  was  stolen,  and  that  her  little 
boy  looked  like  the  picture  of  Charley  Ross.  I  told 
her  if  they  returned  she  could  say  to  them  I  had  seen 
the  boy,  and  he  was  not  mine;  and  kissing  the  little 
fellow  I  left,  feeling  that  the  people  who  had  been  so 
enthusiastic  in  this  case  were  not  at  all  to  be  criticised 
for  the  mistake. 

I  have  already  stated  that  several  convicts  proposed 
to  give  information  relative  to  Charley,  on  condition 
that  they  should  be  released  from  confinement  I 
will  now  relate  a  case  in  which  a  prisoner  attempted  to 
raise  money  by  claiming  to  know  where  the  child  was 
secreted. 

Early  in  October  last,  a  well-known  gentleman  of 
this  city  called  at  my  office  accompanied  by  a  gentle- 
man whom  he  introduced  to  me  as  an  officer  of  high 
rank  in  the  Union  army  during  the  late  war.  The 
officer  said  that  while  in  the  army  he  had  occasion  to 
employ  some  of  his  men  as  spies,  that  one  of  these 
men  named  Clark  since  the  close  of  the  war  had  for 
some  offense  been  imprisoned  in  a  penitentiary  in 
the  State  of  New  York,  and  that  while  in  prison  he 
was  put  in  a  cell  with  another  prisoner  by  the  name 
of  Jones,  who  confided  to  him  that  he  was  one  of  the 
party  engaged  in  taking  Charley  Ross;  was  with 
Mosher  and  Douglas  at  the  time  they  attempted  the 
burglary  on  Long  Island,  but  had  escaped;  that  since 
their  death  Charley  Ross  had  been  in  his  keeping, 


CASES  OF  TRACED  CHILDREN.         329 

and  was  at  that  time  in  charge  of  a  relative  of  his  who 
did  not  want  to  get  into  trouble ;  but  as  soon  as  his 
time  expired  he  intended  to  see  Mr.  Ross  and  arrange 
to  give  up  the  child  and  get  what  reward  he  could. 
Clark  endeavored  to  find  out  where  the  child  was  con- 
cealed, but  failed  to  get  the  information.  As  soon  as 
Clark's  term  of  imprisonment  expired,  he  went  to  the 
city  where  his  former  commander,  my  informant,  re- 
sided ;  but  meeting  with  a  soldier  named  Watson,  who 
had  acted  with  him  during  the  war  in  the  capacity  of  a 
spy,  he  told  him  what  he  had  heard  in  the  penitentiary 
from  Jones.  Clark  and  Watson  after  consultation 
concluded  to  lay  the  matter  before  their  General  (for 
that  was  his  rank)  and  act  under  his  instructions. 
The  General  became  interested  in  the  story,  sent  both 
the  men  to  the  State  of  New  York  to  find  Jones,  with 
instructions  to  use  every  effort  to  discover  the  where- 
abouts of  the  child.  They  learned  that  Jones  after 
his  release  from  the  penitentiary  had  gone  to  a  neigh- 
boring city,  and  had  been  imprisoned  there  under  the 
vagrant  act;  but  becoming  sick  while  in  jail,  the 
authorities  released  him  on  condition  that  he  would 
leave  the  place  within  twenty-four  hours.  He  went  to 
a  small  city  near  by,  joined  a  confederate,  and  the  same 
night  was  captured  in  attempting  a  burglary,  and  he 
was  then  in  jail  awaiting  his  trial.  Clark  and  Watson 
having  traced  Jones  to  the  jail,  went  to  see  him ;  he 
reiterated  his  story  to  both  of  them,  and  said  that  he 
intended  to  get  money  enough  by  robbing  the  store,  in 
which  attempt  he  was  taken,  to  pay  his  expenses  to 
Philadelphia  to  see  Mr.  Ross.  He  would  not  at  that 
time  make  any  further  statement,  but  appointed  a 
meeting  with  them  the  following  day. 


330  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

During  the  time  Clark  and  Watson  were  in  jail  they 
learned  that  letters  written  by  a  woman  were  brought 
to  Jones,  and  post-marked  at  a  village  in  northern 
New  York.  They  also  heard  that  a  woman  had 
visited  him,  and  at  once  concluded  she  was  the  relative 
who  had  charge  of  tlie  child.  On  the  following  day  they 
called  to  fill  their  engagement  with  Jones,  but  he  still 
refused  to  say  anything  more.  They  now  reported  all 
they  had  learned  to  the  General,  who  sent  Watson 
alone  to  work  up  the  case  and  find  the  woman — with 
instructions  as  soon  as  he  found  her  and  the  child 
to  telegraph  in  cipher  to  him.  In  tlie  meantime  Jones 
being  tried  for  attempted  burglary,  convicted  and  sen- 
tenced to  one  year's  imprisonment  in  the  penitentiary, 
was  thus  put  out  of  the  way  of  communicating  with 
any  one  alone,  unless  by  special  permit.  However, 
Watson  thought  as  he  was  now  sentenced,  he  would 
make  another  effort  to  get  the  secret  from  him,  but  was 
unable  to  secure  a  private  interview  with  him.  Foiled 
in.  this,  Watson  now  began  inquiry  along  the  borders 
of  northern  New  York  for  the  woman  who  had  visited 
the  prison,  and  after  some  delay  traced  a  woman  with 
a  child  who  had  come  from  Canada,  and  located  in  a 
town  in  the  State  of  Vermont.  Having  found  her, 
Watson,  now  convinced  that  he  had  the  right  woman, 
and  that  the  child  with  her  was  certainly  Charley 
Ross,  telegraphed  to  the  General  in  cipher:  "Good 
news,  come  on,  bring  some  one  to  identify."  It  was  at 
this  stage  of  the  investigation  that  he  came  to  me,  and 
requested  me  to  accompany  the  parties  for  the  purpose 
of  identification.  The  story  in  some  points  was  con- 
firmed by  letters  from  the  sheriff  and  warden  of  two  of 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  33 1 

the  prisons  in  which  Jones  had  been,  and  there  seemed 
enough  in  it  to  require  further  investigation.  It  was 
thought  best  that  I  should  go  and  examine  into  it. 

After  two  days'  travel  we  arrived  in  the  town  where 
the  womafi  and  child  were  staying,  and  were  met  by 
Watson  at  the  depot.  During  the  conversation  we  had 
with  him,  he  said  something  of  there  being  a  concert 
that  evening,  at  which  the  child  would  sing.  "  What 
do  you  say?"  said  I,  "a  concert !  My  child  cannot  sing 
— there  is  a  mistake.  However,  since  I  am  here,  I  will 
see  the  child."  After  walking  to  the  outskirts  of  the 
town,  as  we  approached  a  cluster  of  cottages  we  ob- 
served a  woman  and  a  child  on  the  side-walk,  dressed 
as  though  they  were  going  to  a  public  place  of  amuse- 
ment; and,  addressing  a  gentleman  who  was  walking 
with  me,  I  said,  "That  is  no  doubt  the  child;  he  is 
entirely  too  large  for  my  little  boy."  My  friend,  not 
satisfied  with  my  decision,  spoke  to  the  woman,  who 
immediately  suspecting  what  had  brought  us  to  see 
her — for  Watson  had  been  watching  her  house  for  sev- 
eral days,  and  she  had  heard  that  she  was  suspected  of 
having  the  stolen  child — became  greatly  excited,  and 
threatened  my  friend  for  daring  to  intimate  that  the  child 
was  Charley  Ross.  A  crowd  now  began  to  collect, 
and  we  beat  a  hasty  retreat,  leaving  the  field  to  the  lady 
and  her  child. 

On  arriving  at  the  hotel,  I  questioned  Watson  about 
his  false  clue.  He  said  he  was  mistaken,  and  had  fol- 
lowed the  wrong  woman,  but  was  certain  he  was  on  the 
right  track,  and  if  he  could  get  a  private  interview  with 
Jones  in  the  penitentiary,  he  had  no  doubt  that  Jones 
would  divulge  the  whole  matter.     I  did  not  feel  willing 


332  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

to  let  the  matter  rest  here,  and  sent  Watson  out  of  the 
town  to  avoid  being  arrested,  as  the  woman  had  threat- 
ened ;  and  arranged  to  send  him  a  pass  from  some  one 
in  authority  to  have  a  private  interview  with  Jones. 
Feeling  that  I  ought  not  to  leave  the  place  without  see- 
ing the  lady  who  had  been  so  annoyed  by  our  looking 
at  her  child,  I  went  to  the  hall  before  the  time  of  begin- 
ning the  concert,  and  sent  my  name  in  with  a  request 
that  she  would  allow  me  to  explain  the  object  of  my  visit. 
An  interview  being  granted,  I  began  to  apologize  for 
interrupting  them;  when  I  was  stopped  by  several 
young  women,  who,  with  the  mother  of  the  child — all 
talking  at  one  time — greeted  me  with  such  a  volley  of 
words  that  under  ordinary  circumstances  I  should  have 
gladly  escaped ;  but  feeling  they  had  some  cause  for 
offense,  I  heard  them  through,  and  then  asked  their 
pardon  for  any  annoyance  I  had  caused  them,  and  left 
the  town  the  same  night. 

We  stopped  at  the  capital  of  the  State,  and  obtained 
from  the  attorney  general  the  pass  into  the  penitentiary, 
sent  it  to  Watson,  and  returned  home  to  await  further 
developments.  A  day  or  two  after  our  return,  Watson 
also  came  back,  and  said  he  had  failed  to  get  anything 
more  from  Jones,  except  that  he  gave  him  the  name 
and  address  of  the  attorney  who  had  defended  him  at 
his  last  trial.  Having  determined  I  would  find  out  the 
truth  of  this  story,  if  it  was  at  all  possible,  I  went  per- 
sonally to  see  this  attorney,  who  resides  in  the  State  of 
New  York.  After  introducing  myself,  I  asked  if  he 
was  counsel  for  Jones  who  had  been  recently  convicted 
for  attempted  burglary,  and  was  now  serving  his  time 
in  tlie  penitentiary.     He  replied  that  he  had  defended 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  333 

him.  I  then  told  him  what  I  had  heard :  that  Jones  had 
spoken  to  Clark,  his  fellow  prisoner,  and  also  to  Wat- 
son, of  having  possession  of  my  son.  He  replied,  "  Mr. 
Ross,  I  know  all  about  that;  I  claim  that  Jones  would 
have  got  five  years  instead  of  one,  if  I  had  not  been  em- 
ployed in  the  case.  When  in  our  jail,  he  sent  for  me  to 
defend  him.  I  asked  how  he  expected  to  pay  me?  He 
replied,  "There  were  two  men  here  yesterday,  to  whom 
I  told  that  I  knew  all  about  Charley  Ross,  where  he 
is,  and  who  had  him ;  and  I  had  intended  to  see  Mr. 
Ross  to  make  an  exchange,  giving  up  the  child  for  the 
reward,  but  was  picked  up  too  soon.  One  of  these 
men  was  in  prison  in  the  same  cell  with  me  a  short 
time  ago,  to  whom  I  told  the  same  story,  and  he 
has  brought  another  person  who  has  money  to  buy  me 
out,  and  they  will  be  here  to-day;  and  I  expect  to  get 
six  or  eight  hundred  dollars  for  locating  the  child,  and 
will  give  this  money  to  you  for  your  fee,  if  you  will 
defend  me  in  this  case." 

The  attorney  said  to  me  that  he  did  not  think  that 
proposition  altogether  legitimate,  and  he  tried  to  find 
out  from  Jones  if  there  was  any  truth  in  his  story.  He 
said  to  Jones,  "There  is  a  reward  offered  for  the  child, 
and  if  what  you  say  is  true,  tell  me  where  he  is  and  I 
will  get  him,  restore  him  to  his  parents,  and  divide  the 
reward  between  you  and  your  mother,  after  reserving 
my  fee  for  defending  you;"  and  added  to  me,  "I  con- 
sidered that  legitimate,  Mr.  Ross."  The  fellow  confessed 
it  was  all  a  lie,  and  he  knew  nothing;  but  expected  to  get 
money  out  of  some  one,  and  as  he  was  now  in  a  tight 
place,  he  thought  he  would  make  it  out  of  the  person 
who  had  been  brought  to  the  jail  by  his  fellow-prisoner. 


334  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

The  attorney  was  satisfied  that  the  scoundrel  had  been 
lying,  and  said,  "Mr.  Ross, you  would  have  heard  from 
me  six  weeks  ago,  if  there  had  been  any  truth  in  what 
the  fellow  said,  and  I  would  have  made  out  of  it  what 
I  could.  The  woman  who  called  at  the  prison  was  his 
mother,  a  very  respectable  woman.  My  fee  was  paid 
by  his  mother  and  brother;  he  was  sentenced  to  one 
year,  and  I  think  will  not  live  many  months.  If  you 
would  like  to  talk  with  him,  I  will  go  with  you  to  the 
penitentiary,  if  you  pay  my  expenses  and  give  me  a  fair 
compensation  for  my  time  and  services.  You  see,  sir, 
I  am  a  man  of  business,  and  don't  wholly  depend  on 
the  law.  I  have  just  returned  from  a  county  fair,  where 
I  have  some  fine  cattle  on  exhibition,  and  I  have  a  farm 
outside  of  the  city;  I  am  also  engaged  in  the  iron  busi- 
ness. My  time  is  well  taken  up,  but  still  I  will  go 
with  you  of  course,  if  you  pay  me;  but  I  think  I  did 
everything  to  get  the  rascal  to  tell  the  truth,  and  don't 
believe  you  will  gain  anything  by  the  trip."  I  thought 
that  a  person  who  had  so  sharp  an  eye  to  business, 
when  there  was  a  prospect  of  getting  his  fee  in  a  way  he 
called  legitimate,  had  got  the  truth  out  of  Jones,  and 
told  him  I  would  rest  satisfied  that  the  whole  story  was 
false. 

When  on  this  trip,  as  the  train  about  noon  ap- 
proached Rutland,  Vermont,  I  observed  that  a  circus 
and  menagerie  company  were  exhibiting,  and  a  person 
in  the  car  remarked  that  they  had  a  wax  figure  of 
Charley  Ross  on  exhibition.  Learning  that  we  would 
have  to  wait  in  Rutland  about  two  hours  for  the  train 
which  was  to  take  us  to  our  destination,  I  proposed  to  my 
friends  to  visit  the  wax  figure.     After  dining,  we  went 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  335 

in  the  direction  of  the  show.  Large  crowds  of  people, 
on  foot,  on  horseback,  and  in  wagons,  were  wending 
their  way  in  the  same  direction.  After  entering  the 
tent,  our  object  was  first  to  see  the  wax  image,  which 
was  in  the  wagon  nearest  the  door.  The  wagon  or 
cage  was  divided  into  two  compartments,  in  the  first 
of  which  was  a  representation  of  what  was  called  the 
"  Intemperate  Family;"  in  the  other  was  what  the  pro- 
prietor called  the  "The  Ross  Family,"  consisting  of 
five  persons.  The  figure  called  Charley  was  that  of 
a  very  handsome  child,  of  about  his  age  and  size,  with 
long  flaxen  hair,  which  looked  as  if  it  had  been  curled, 
but  was  flowing  when  we  saw  it.  He  had  dark  brown 
eyes  and  features  rather  sharp,  was  dressed  in  a  linen 
suit,  and  was  standing  on  a  pedestal  in  front  of  a  small 
table,  with  one  arm  resting  on  it.  He  was  represented 
as  being  about  to  speak  to  a  little  girl,  supposed  to  be 
his  eldest  sister,  who  was  seated  on  a  small  chair  at 
the  end  of  the  table.  At  one  end  of  the  table  near  the 
little  girl  was  the  figure  of  a  lady  supposed  to  repre- 
sent Mrs.  Ross.  She  had  a  sad  countenance,  and  was 
dressed  in  a  light  green  silk  dress,  trimmed  in  the  ex- 
treme of  fashion.  At  the  other  end  of  the  table  was  a 
figure  of  a  man  with  florid  complexion,  large  moustache 
of  a  dark  color,  with  a  clean-shaven  face,  apparently 
about  thirty-five  years  of  age,  supposed  to  be  myself. 
By  the  side  of  the  man  there  was  a  little  boy  about 
three  years  old,  dressed  in  a  sailor  suit  and  mounted 
on  a  hobby-horse.  The  representation  of  Charley,  in 
which  I  was  most  interested,  was  not  a  likeness  of  him. 
It  lacked  his  roundness  of  features,  and  the  expression 
of  the  face  was  entirely  different  from  his. 


336  CHARLEY   ROSS, 

On  the  pedestal  on  which  the  figure  of  Charley 
was  standing  there  was  pasted  a  placard  as  follows : 

THE  ROSS  FAMILY. 
I  will  give  to  any  one  who  will  restore  to  me  the  lost  child,  Charley 
B.  Ross,  or  who  will  give  me  any  information  which  will  lead  to  his 
recovery,  the  sum  of  ^2,000.  [Signed  by  the  Proprietor.] 

After  looking  at  the  group  a  few  minutes,  we  walked 
round  the  circle  of  wagons,  in  which  were  other  wax 
figures  and  animals,  and  then  returned  to  the  van 
which  contained  "  The  Ross  Family,"  and  found  the 
space  so  crowded  that  it  was  difficult  to  get  near. 

The  friend  who  accompanied  me  suggested  that  we 
should  take  different  positions,  and  hear  the  remarks 
made  by  the  visitors.  A  gentleman  and  lady  came 
near  to  where  I  stood,  and  looking  at  the  group  a  few 
moments,  the  man  said  to  the  lady,  pointing  to  the 
figure  of  Charley  :  "  That's  Charley  Ross."  The 
lady  replied,  **  Ain't  he  handsome ;  how  much  he 
looks  like  his  father."  The  child  had  dark  brown 
eyes,  while  mine  in  the  figure  were  very  light  blue. 
Another  man  and  woman  with  two  children  approached; 
the  man,  called  the  attention  of  his  wife  to  the  group, 
and  raised  his  children  up,  telling  them,  "That  little 
boy  is  Charley  Ross,  who  was  stolen  from  his  home, 
and  has  not  been  found."  And  with  great  emphasis  he 
continued,  "  I  should  know  that  child  if  I  ever  saw 
him  anywhere."  Many  other  remarks  were  made  by 
different  persons  which  seemed  to  us  ludicrous ;  yet 
they  showed  the  sympathy  and  kind  feelings  of  the 
people. 

Having  heard  when  in  Burlington,  Vermont,  a  few 
months  before  this  time,  that  Smith's  circus  had  a  wax 


CASES   OF  TRACED   CHILDREN.  337 

figure  of  Charley  and  had  distributed  printed  handbills 
describing  him,  and  setting  forth  that  the  boy's  parents 
had  offered  ;^5,000  reward  for  his  recovery,  and  the 
ladies  of  Philadelphia  would  give  ^3,000  more,  and 
tliat  Smith  himself  would  add  ^2,000,  I  went  to  the 
doorkeeper  and  asked  if  they  also  distributed  circulars  ? 
he  answered,  "  No."  I  asked  him  if  many  persons 
came  to  see  this  group.  He  replied, "  Many  persons 
who  would  not  go  to  a  circus  come  to  see  Charley 
Ross ;"  and  while  talking  to  the  doorkeeper,  1  overheard 
a  person  calling  the  proprietor  of  the  show  by  name. 
At  once  I  turned  to  my  friend,  who  was  still  interested 
in  the  remarks  made  by  the  crowd,  and  told  him  that 
I  would  talk  with  the  proprietor.  He  replied,  "  I  know 
him,  and  will  introduce  you  to  him."  He  introduced 
me  by  the  name  which  I  had  assumed,  Mr.  Robinson. 
After  a  few  casual  remarks  between  the  proprietor  and 
my  friend,  I  said  to  the  proprietor  : 

"  I  see  you  have  a  wax  representation  of  the  Ross 
family  ?"     He  said : 

**Yes." 

"  Is  it  attractive  ?"  I  asked. 

"  Oh,  yes,  the  space  around  the  wagon  is  generally 
crowded,  as  you  see  it  is  now.  Many  persons  come  to 
see  Charley  Ross  who  would  not  go  to  a  circus." 

"Then  it  must  be  profitable?" 

"Yes,  more  so  than  any  other  thing.  It's  no  ex- 
pense to  me." 

"Is  the  likeness  of  Charley  regarded  as  a  good 
one?" 

"Yes,  it  is  taken  from  a  picture." 

"Where  did  you  get  the  picture?" 
15 


338  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

"  From  the  family." 

"  I  see  you  have  also  the  father  and  mother,  and  two 
other  children;  are  they  good  representations? 

"Yes,  I  know  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ross  well.  My  winter 
quarters  are  only  about  one  mile  from  their  residence, 
and  I  have  seen  them  often,  and  have  been  to  their 
house." 

"How  about  the  other  children  in  the  group?" 

"  Oh,  they  have  other  children  besides  Charley,  and 
those  are  good  likenesses  of  two  of  the  other  children." 

"  How  about  Charley's  hair  ?  I  always  heard  that 
when  it  was  long  it  curled  easily,  while  the  hair  on  that 
figure  is  straight." 

"  Well,  you  see,  it's  a  damp  day ;  and,  although  the 
hair  was  curled,  we  cannot  without  a  great  deal  of 
trouble  keep  the  curls  in." 

After  continuing  the  conversation  a  while,  I  could 
not  restrain  myself  longer  from  telling  him  who  I  was, 
and  nodded  to  my  friend,  who  was  so  ashamed  at  the 
trap  in  which  the  proprietor  was  caught,  that  he  sig- 
nified to  me  not  to  do  it.  I  again  asked  the  showman 
a  number  of  other  questions,  and  his  replies  involved 
him  in  greater  straits.  I  then  turned,  and  looking  him 
full  in  the  face,  said; 

"Do  you  think  I  look  likethe  man  you  have  repre- 
sented in  the  cage?" 

After  taking  a  fair  look  at  me,  he  replied: 

"No." 

"  Well,  sir,  I  am  the  father  of  Charley  Ross,"  at  the 
same  time  handing  him  a  photograph  likeness  of  Char- 
ley. My  friend  also  was  obliged  to  confirm  my  state- 
ment.    The  proprietor  was   so   dumfounded   that  he 


CASES   OF  TRACED   CHILDREN.  .  339 

could  not  say  anything  for  a  minute,  and  looked  as 
though  he  would  like  to  hide  himself  if  he  could ;  but 
rallying,  he  said: 

**  My  goodness,  you  aint  Charley  Ross's  father,"  and 
taking  both  of  my  hands,  said,  "  How  I  do  sympathize 
with  you !  You  saw  that  poster  on  the  pedestal  on  which 
the  figure  of  your  little  boy  stands ;  well,  I'll  give  ;^2000 
for  the  information  where  your  little  boy  is,  and  nothing 
would  please  me  better  than  to  have  a  chance  to  pay  it ; 
and  I  don't  think  I  do  you  any  harm  by  making  this 
exhibition  of  yourself  and  family,  but  rather  good;  for, 
I  assure  you,  many  people  see  this  group  who  would 
otherwise  never  have  heard  of  the  loss  of  the  child;  and 
further,  I  would  go  many  miles  if  I  could  serve  you." 

The  picture  from  which  the  wax  model  was  made, 
he  said,  he  obtained  from  the  Mayor  of  our  city,  in 
whose  office  he  said  he  was  introduced  to  me.  I  told 
him  he  had  the  representation  of  a  very  pretty  child, 
but  there  was  no  resemblance  in  it  to  my  little  boy. 
He  said  it  was  the  best  he  could  get,  and  that  Smith's 
figure  was  made  in  the  same  mould.  I  then  asked  him 
how  he  got  the  rest  of  the  family? 

"Well,"  said  he,  "Mr.  Ross,  I'll  tell  jou,  but  I  would 
not  care  to  have  it  known.  We  used  to  have  a  represen- 
tation of  an  intemperate  and  of  a  temperate  family  in 
that  van,  separated  by  a  partition ;  and  when  we  got  the 
figure  of  Charley,  we  let  the  intemperate  family  stand, 
and  changed  the  label  of  the  other  from  the  "  Temper- 
ate Family"  to  "The  Ross  Family,"  and  put  the 
figure  of  Charley  in  front  as  you  see  it.  That's  the 
way  we  arranged  it."  I  was  a  little  taken  aback  my- 
self at  this  explanation  ;  but  the  man  evidently  sympa- 


340  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

thized  deeply  with  me,  and  at  the  same  time  had  an 
eye  open  to  business,  for  as  I  was  leaving  him,  he  said : 
"  Now  Mr.  Ross,  when  that  boy's  found  I  want  you  to 
let  me  have  him  to  exhibit.  He  will  draw  better  than 
anything  I  can  get.  I'll  give  you  a  thousand  dollars  a 
week  for  him  for  thirty  weeks."  I  told  him  I  was  not 
considering  that  now.  My  object  was  to  get  possession 
of  the  boy,  and  the  purpose  of  my  visit  was  to  see  a  child 
reported  to  be  Charley  ;  but  I  had  but  little  hope  of 
success.  I  bade  him  good  bye,  and  he  called  out  again, 
**  Remember,  ^30,000  for  thirty  weeks  exhibition."  He 
told  me  in  tlie  conversation  that  while  in  Canada  he 
picked  up  two  tramps  who  had  a  child  which  he  sup- 
posed was  my  little  boy,  and  had  taken  them  a  long 
distance  before  he  was  satisfied  that  he  was  wrong,  thus 
showing  his  interest  and  earnest  desire  to  aid  us  in  re- 
covering Charley.  I  left  him,  feeling  very  kindly 
towards  him. 

It  is  not  an  unusual  thing  to  receive  letters  and  tele- 
grams similar  to  the  following:  "Send  me  some  person 
who  can  identify  Charley  Ross,  quick;"  and  for  some 
time  after  the  abduction  we  were  quick  to  respond, 
either  by  going  or  sending  to  the  place  from  which  the 
dispatch  or  letter  came;  but  we  soon  learned  that  it 
was  very  easy  for  persons  to  be  mistaken  in  identity, 
and  getting  so  many  calls  to  go  here  and  there,  it  be- 
came necessary  to  adopt  some  other  method  of  tracing 
children.  The  telegraph,  as  I  have  already  stated,  be- 
ing at  our  service  gratuitously,  wherever  we  could  we 
investigated  cases  by  means  of  it,  and  generally  have 
been  successful  in  arriving  at  a  satisfactory  conclusion, 
as  already  related.     One  of  tlie  most  exciting  cases 


i 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  34! 

publicly  known  of  a  child  reported  to  be  Charley,  was 
of  a  boy  found  in  a  railroad  car  and  taken  to  St.  Albans, 
Vermont.  Although  we  were  satisfied  he  was  not 
Charley,  upon  our  first  information  of  him,  yet  it  was 
difficult  to  convince  the  people  of  St.  Albans  and  other 
places  that  our  judgment  was  correct.  I  first  heard  of 
this  boy  while  in  the  cars  on  my  way  to  New  York. 
In  reading  the  morning  paper  my  eye  rested  on  a  tele- 
gram from  St.  Albans,  saying  that  there  was  a  child  in 
that  place  who  gave  his  name  as  Charley  Ross,  and 
said  he  was  stolen  from  Philadelphia.  On  reaching 
New  York  I  went  to  the  Western  Union  Telegraph 
office,  and  through  the  kindness  of  the  Superintendent 
was  put  in  direct  communication  with  the  operator  in 
St.  Albans,  asking  for  a  description  of  the  child,  and  re- 
ceived the  following  answer:  "The  child  is  about  forty 
inches  in  height,  has  light  curly  hair,  quite  long;  slim 
frame  and  features,  right  eye  a  little  crossed,  wears  blue 
sailor's  shirt  and  pants,  and  rough,  heavy,  long  boots; 
evidently  seven  years  old,  sound  teeth,  and  lips  resem- 
bling the  Ross  boy's,  blue  eyes'*  I  then  asked,  " Can 
he  give  the  name  of  either  of  his  brothers  or  sisters?" 
Answer,  "Mary  and  Freddie."  I  answered,  "Wrong, 
Charley's  eyes  are  brown;"  and  I  supposed  it  was  ended 
there.  Two  or  three  days  afterwards,  I  received  two 
letters  from  St.  Albans,  one  from  a  citizen,  the  other 
from  the  sheriff  of  the  county,  each  covering  a  photo- 
graph of  the  boy.  A  few  extracts  from  both  letters  are 
given : 

St.  Albans,  Vermont,  December  30,  187^. 
Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Sir: — Enclosed  you  will  find  photograph  of  a 
boy,  found  on  night  express  train  from  Boston  to  Montreal,  who  is  sup- 
posed by  many  persons  to  be  your  lost  Charley.     He  is,  as  you  will 


342  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

sec,  a  bright  intelligent  lad,  judged  to  be  about  seven  years  old,  though 
some  think  him  older.  The  boy  says  his  name  is  Charley  Ross,  and 
he  was  taken  from  his  parents  in  Philadelphia  about  two  years  ago. 
When  in  Philadelphia  he  lived  in  a  large  light-colored  brick  house, 
with  brown  trimmings  ;  that  he  had  a  brother  Eddie  and  a  sister  Mary ; 
he  said  the  house  next  to  his  father's  was  occupied  by  a  Mr.  McDaniels; 
says  he  has  cousins  by  the  name  of  Harry,  Walter  and  Stoughton.  His 
grandfather's  name  was  Archie  Ross ;  he  attended  school  on  Windsor 
street,  and  his  teacher's  name  was  Grant ;  his  Sunday-school  teacher's 
name  was  Cope.  She  learnt  him  the  following  hymn:  "Jesus  loves  me, 
that  I  know,"  etc. ;  that  he  was  taken  away  in  a  carriage ;  that  his 
brother  was  in  a  carriage  with  him  :  they  rode  to  a  store  where  they  got 
candy  and  marbles ;  then  they  went  to  a  cemetery  where  his  brother 
was  left  out  of  the  wagon  and  he  wanted  to  go  with  him,  but  the  mea 
said  they  would  whip  him.  He  says  his  mother's  horse  is  called  Polly, 
and  speaks  about  a  Dr.  Dunton.  He  gives  a  remarkable  account  of  him- 
self and  his  story  is  straight.  He  is  here  in  custody,  and  if  you  think  this 
is  worthy  of  your  notice,  telegraph  to  me  at  once.  Mr.  Rugg,  the  gentle- 
man with  whom  the  boy  is  now,  is  very  confident  that  he  is  your  little 
boy,  and  says  his  eyes  are  not  blue  but  hazel. 

D.  J.  MORRELL,  Sheriff, 
St.  Albans^  Vermont, 
P.  S. — The  above  is  substantially  as  the  boy  has  given  the  story  to  us. 

D.  J.  M. 

The  other  letter  says : 

There  is  a  boy  in  St.  Albans  who  says  his  name  is  Charley  Ross. 
He  was  taken  to  Governor  Smith's  house,  and  an  album  given  him  to 
look  over.  He  identified  a  boy  by  the  name  of  Willie  Stanton,  which 
was  correct,  etc.,  etc.  There  are  many  things  which  he  says  that  have 
been  substantiated.  Many  of  the  people  are  anxious  you  should  come 
to  St.  Albans,  and  will  pay  all  your  expenses  whether  he  proves  to  be 
your  boy  or  not.  If  you  have  not  started  before  this  reaches  you,  please 
telegraph  that  you  are  coming,  etc.,  etc. 

There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  about  the  color  of  his  eyes  ;  they  are 
dark  hazel ;  persons  also  differ  in  respect  to  his  age.  I  will  only  add  a 
few  words.  The  people  sympathize  very  much  with  you  and  your  wife, 
and  do  not  want  to  let  this  child  get  away  until  you  have  been  here  and 
given  your  opinion.  Hoping  that  you  will  come  immediately,  etc. 
I  am  yours  truly, 

Signed, . 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  343 

Other  letters  were  received  at  the  same  time  from 
citizens  in  St.  Albans,  giving  reports  of  what  the  boy 
said  of  his  past  life,  in  one  of  which  it  was  said  that  he 
could  write,  and  gave  the  name  of  some  of  his  school- 
mates. 

Before  any  of  these  letters  reached  me,  I  received  the 
following  telegrams,  dated 

St.  Albans,  Vermont. 
Christian  K.  Ross.— Come  to  St.  Albans  to  identify  boy.     Railroad 
fare  will  be  paid.     New  satisfactory  developments.     Make  your  home 
at  Weldon  House  free  of  expense.     Answer. 

Signed,  Proprietor  of  Weldon  House. 

St.  Albans,  January  i^  1876, 
C.  K.  Ross. — ^The  boy  has  dark  hazel  eyes ;  come  on  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible ;  your  expenses  will  all  be  paid. 

Signed,  LAVENDER. 

And  on  the  next  day  the  following : 

C.  K.  Ross. — Have  you  received  Sheriff  Morrell's  letter ;  if  so  are  you 
coming?  Your  boy  is  here  sure.  People  much  excited.  Arrive,  if  pos- 
sible, on  early  morning  train.  Come  immediately  to  my  room.  One 
seventy-six  unnoticed.  Signed,  Lavender. 

I  had  not  received  the  sheriff's  letter  containing  the 
photograph  at  the  time  the  above  telegrams  were  sent 
to  me,  and  replied  I  would  await  the  arrival  of  the  pic- 
ture, and  then  telegraph  what  I  would  do.  But  the 
people  were  so  intensely  in  earnest  that  another  dis- 
patch was  sent,  insisting  I  must  come  to  St.  Albans  by 
the  next  train.  I  now  concluded  I  would  talk  to  the 
child,  and  ask  him  some  questions  by  telegraph,  and 
requested  the  sheriff  to  bring  him  into  the  telegraph 
office  in  St.  Albans.     I  asked: 

"What  is  your  name?"  answer: 

"  Charley  Ross." 

"  Your  brother's  name  ?" 


344  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

"Eddie;" — gave  names  of  his  cousins  as  Walter  and 
Harry. 

"On  what  street  or  lane  did  you  Hve?" 

"  West  Albion." 

"How  were  you  taken  from  home?" 

"  In  a  carriage." 

"  Who  was  taken  with  you  ?" 

"My  brother." 

"What  is  your  eldest  sister's  name**" 

"Mary." 

Th^  conversation  was  kept  up  until  I  was  satisfied 
Dcyond  a  doubt  that  he  was  not  my  little  boy.  The 
only  answer  to  the  few  questions  given  above  that  is 
correct  is,  that  he  was  taken  away  in  a  carriage.  I  then 
telegraphed  that  the  child  was  certainly  not  my  Char- 
ley. In  answer  to  which  the  following  dispatch  was 
received:  "All  leading  citizens  had  the  boy  to  dinner 
and  tea,  etc.  Thcyjiave  conversed  with  him,  and  all 
sincerely  believe  he  is  your  son ;  there  is  a  great  ex- 
citement, and  nothing  will  satisfy  them  until  Mr.  Ross 
sees  him." 

They  further  stated  "that  the  boy  had  pointed  out  a 
photograph  of  Willie  Stanton,  son  of  Mr.  M.  Hall  Stan- 
ton, of  Philadelphia,  in  an  album,  and  called  him  by 
name.  Mr.  Stanton  is  a  friend  of  Governor  Smith's, 
where  the  child  was  when  he  saw  the  photograph." 
Mr.  Stanton  being  a  resident  of  this  city,  he  was 
brought  to  the  telegraph  oflRce  to  explain  if  possible 
the  puzzle.  He  said  that  he  knew  Governor  Smith 
well,  and  his  family  had  been  visiting  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  St.  Albans  for  several  months  during  last 
summer,  but  he  could  not  tell  how  the  child   knew  his 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  345 

son  ;  but  promised  when  the  picture  came  to  hand, 
that  he  would  take  it  and  ask  his  Httle  boy  if  he  could 
tell  who  the  child  was.  Mr.  Stanton  also  telegraphed 
to  Governor  Smith,  but  received  no  information  differ- 
ing from  that  already  in  our  possession.  The  Gover- 
nor closed  his  dispatches  by  saying,  "  We  will  pay  Mr. 
Ross's  expenses  if  he  will  come  up  and  solve  this  vexed 
question."  The  following  morning  after  all  this  tele- 
graphing, which  was  carried  on  nearly  the  whole  of  the 
preceding  day,  I  received  the  sheriff's  letter  with  the 
photograph,  and  telegraphed  to  him  that  the  child  was 
not  my  Charley,  and  Mr.  Stanton's  son  did  not  recog- 
nize the  picture,  and  did  not  know  who  the  boy  was. 
At  the  same  time  I  wrote  the  following  letter : 

Philadelphia,  January  4,  1876. 
D.  J.  MoRRELL,  Esq.,  Sheriff  of  St.  Albans,  Vermont. — Dear 
Sir: — I  received  your  favor  of  30th  ult.  with  enclosure  of  the  photo- 
graph of  the  child  in  your  charge.  The  picture  has  not  the  faintest 
resemblance  to  my  little  son  Charley  ;  besides,  he  is  much  too  old. 
My  little  boy  is  five  years  eight  months  to-day.  Some  few  things 
the  boy  has  told  are  correct,  but  could  be  learned  from  circulars  01 
newspapers ;  such  as  "  Miss  Cope,  his  Sunday-school  teacher,"  and 
"  Dr.  Dunton,  our  family  physician."  Generally,  however,  his  answers 
are  far  out  of  the  way.  My  little  boy  never  lived  in  the  city  proper. 
We  live  seven  miles  out  in  the  country,  in  a  sparsely-settled  part.  He  did 
not  know  any  boys  in  Philadelphia;  never  went  to  school.  Knew  only 
a  part  of  his  alphabet ;  could  not  write.  In  fact,  he  was  a  little  fellow, 
wearing  dresses  when  he  was  taken  away,  July  the  1st,  1874.  He  has 
no  brother  called  Eddie,  or  sister  named  Mary.  We  do  not  live  in  a 
brick  house,  but  a  stone  plastered  house ;  did  not  have  any  hired  girl 
named  Lizzie.  I  have  no  idea  that  my  Charley  could  give  a  connected 
account  of  travel;  he  is  too  young.  I  sent  for  Mr.  M.  Hall  Stanton  to 
come  to  the  telegraph  office  yesterday,  and  gave  him  the  picture  to  show 
to  his  son  W^illie,  with  the  hope  that  we  might  trace  something  connected 
with  this  child  who  is  with  you.  He  returned  it  this  morning  saying  his 
boy  could  not  tell  who  he  was.  Willie  Stanton  had  no  school  teacher 
15^ 


34^  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

named  Miss  Grant,  and  he  does  not  know  any  of  the  boys  named,  etc.; 
so  I  am  unable  to  give  you  any  information  where  the  child  belongs. 

It  is  not  an  unusual  thing  for  children  who  are  astray  to  call  them- 
selves Charley  Ross.  I  have  had  a  number  of  instances  of  the  kind, 
and  they  are  the  most  difficult  to  handle,  because  persons  reporting  them 
will  not  be  convinced  that  I  would  know  my  little  boy  after  so  long  an 
absence.  I  take  more  pains  to  investigate  such  cases,  and  do  not  give 
them  up  until  I  am  fully  convinced  I  am  right,  which  has  been  done  in 
this  instance. 

Thanking  you  and  the  citizens  who  have  taken  such  an  interest  in  this 
matter,  for  their  expressions  of  sympathy  and  kindness,  I  could  only 
wish  their  suspicions  were  correct,  and  this  long  and  great  mystery  was 
solved  by  the  return  of  my  little  Charley. 

I  am  most  respectfully  yours, 

Christian  K.  Ross. 

To  the  gentleman  who  wrote  and  telej^raphed  me  to 
come  to  St.  Albans,  and  make  my  home  at  his  house 
during  my  stay  in  the  place,  after  giving  the  reasons 
why  I  was  satisfied  the  child  who  had  caused  so  great 
an  excitement  was  not  my  son,  I  said  : 

This  is  not  the  first  case  that  has  baffled  the  skill  of  strangers  to 
fathom.  I  have  one  that  is  much  more  remarkable,  where  a  child  not 
only  calls  himself  Charley  Ross,  but  answers  many  questions  rightly, 
and  rglates  quite  a  number  of  things  which  we  might  suppose  no  one 
could  know  anything  about,  except  members  of  my  own  family  or  those 
very  intimate  with  it :  and  yet,  when  fully  investigated,  proved  to  be 
wrong.  Experience  has  taught  me,  in  the  past  eighteen  months,  not  to 
jump  at  conclusions  too  hastily,  but  to  examine  first.  I  then  do  not 
feci  disappointed  so  greatly  (which  has  thus  far  been  my  lot). 

The  child  you  have  has  either  read  or  heard  read  the  Pinkerton  cir- 
culars which  were  issued  last  summer  a  year  (1874)  in  which  questions 
were  asked  and  the  answers  given,  that  strangers  might  more  readily  find 
out  from  any  child  they  might  deem  suspicious  if  he  was  really  mine, 
etc.,  etc.  I  have  written  to  you  fully,  as  well  as  to  the  Sheriff,  to  satisfy 
those  who  were  so  deeply  interested  why  I  have  not  been  to  St.  Albans 
to  identify  the  child.  I  considered  it  would  be  a  useless  expense  of  both 
time  and  money.  I  think,  however,  that  the  child  with  you  has  been  to 
Philadelphia,  and  being  observant,  has  picked  up  some  knowledge  of  4 


CASES   OF   TRACED   CHILDREN.  34/ 

places,  etc.,  which  with  the  assumption  of  the  name  of  Charley  Ross 
has  deceived  those  who  have  been  interested  in  the  case.  Hoping  you 
may  get  the  truth  and  find  out  where  the  boy  belongs, 

I  am  yours  truly.  Christian  K.  Ross. 

Notwithstanding  the  most  rigid  examination  by  dif- 
ferent persons  in  St.  Albans,  the  boy  maintained  that 
he  was  Charley  Ross  and  no  one  else.  He  was  re- 
clothed  and  feted  by  the  kind  citizens;  and  although 
the  reasons  which  I  gave  that  he  could  not  be  my 
child  were  unanswerable,  yet  many  persons  clung  to 
the  belief  that  I  was  mistaken ;  and  not  until  the  child 
was  on  his  way  to  Milford,  New  Hampshire,  where  his 
mother  lived,  did  he  confess  that  he  had  been  imposing 
on  the  people.  His  name  proved  to  be  Jimmy 
Blanchard.  Many  persons  at  the  time  criticised  my 
course  in  not  going  to  St.  Albans  and  personally  ex- 
amining the  boy.  I  also  received  not  a  few  letters 
from  persons  in  different  places  who  attempted  to  argue 
that  the  boy  was  mine,  stating  that  I  would  not  know 
him  after  so  long  an  absence.  Mr.  Stanton's  family, 
with  his  little  boy  Willie,  had  been  to  Milford  for^a 
few  days  at  a  military  encampment,  and  the  Blanchard 
boy  heard  from  Willie  Stanton  v/hat  he  knew  of  places 
in  and  around  Philadelphia,  and  his  fertile  imagination 
supplied  the  rest. 

While  I  was  sorry  that  the  people  of  St.  Albans  had 
been  imposed  on,  yet  the  kind  treatment  bestowed  on 
the  little  deceiver  was  evidence  of  what  my  own  child 
would  have  received  had  he  fallen  into  their  generous 
hands. 

Among  the  first  questions  we  have  asked,  whenever 
a  child  was  reported,  who  was  thought  to  be  Charley, 


348  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

has  been,  "What  is  the  color  of  the  eyes?"  and  out  of 
the  large  number  of  children  who  have  been  traced, 
who  have  a  light  or  fair  complexion,  and  light  hair,  but 
few  have  dark  eyes;  generally  they  are  blue  or  bluish 
gray.  This  test  frequently  has  been  the  only  one  on 
which  our  decisions  have  been  based ;  yet  we  have  found 
that  it  is  not  altogether  safe  to  rely  on  the  judgment  of 
persons  in  this  respect.  Men  are  generally  very  unre- 
liable in  distinguishing  shades  of  color.  In  many  in- 
stances when  several  men  have  given  their  opinion  as 
to  color  of  the  eyes  of  a  child  who  was  standing  before 
them,  they  have  differed;  and  even  the  same  person  has, 
at  a  different  time,  given  a  different  opinion;  and  when 
that  is  the  only  test  within  our  reach,  we  ask  that  a 
woman  may  examine  the  child's  eyes,  and  have  found 
her  decision  much  more  likely  to  be  correct 

I  remember  an  instance  in  which  a  man  reported  a 
child,  of  whose  idenity  with  Charley  Ross  he  was  cer- 
tain, and  when  asked  about  the  color  of  his  eyes,  an- 
swered so  decidedly  wrong  that  we  supposed  the  mat- 
ter was  settled;  but  soon  he  changed  his  opinion  as  to 
the  color,  and  the  subsequent  tracing  of  the  child  in- 
volved considerable  labor  and  expense.  The  following 
telegram  was  received  at  the  Mayor's  office  in  this  case: 

Monroe,  Michigan,  September ^^  ■'^7J. 
Mayor  of  the  City  of  Philadelphia. — Charley  Ross  is  alive, 
and  is  in  this  state.  M.  Miller. 

This  dispatch  was  taken  to  Mr.  Robinson,  Manager 
of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company,  and  he 
asked  the  operator  at  Monroe,  Michigan, 

"Who  is  M.  Miller?  Where  is  the  child  mentioned  by  him?  What 
the  color  of  his  eyes 


CASES   OF  TRACED   CHILDREN.  349 

To  which  the  following  reply  was  sent : 

Monroe,  Michigan. 
Miller  is  here;  says  child's  eyes  are  blue. 

To  which  Mr.  Robinson  answered : 

Thanks  for  kindness ;  Charley  Ross  has  hazel  or  brown  eyes.  The 
child  Miller  refers  to  is  wrong. 

We  ^supposed  that  it  was  decided ;  but  very  soon 
Mr.  Miller  returned  to  the  office  in  Monroe,  and  sent 
the  following  dispatch : 

Monroe,  Michigan,  September,  iS^S- 
Miller  has  just  been  in;  says  the  boy  "has  brown  eyes,  and  is  undoubt' 
edly  Charley  Ross.     He  pounded  his  fist  on  the  desk,  and  says  with 
emphasis  that  he  is  not  mistaken.  Signed,  Operator. 

The  next  question  that  was  asked  was : 

Where  is  the  child  ?  Can  you  see  it  or  get  it  in  our  office  ?  Ross 
family  cannot  leave  the  city  now.  RoBiNSON. 

The  answer  to  the  above  is  as  follows : 

Monroe,  Michigan,  September  ii. 
Miller  wont  tell  anything ;  wants  Ross  to  come  or  send  some  one. 
He  is  quite  positive  the  clue  is  right.         Signed,  OPERATOR. 

A  reply  was  sent : 

Philadelphia. 
Out  of  the  question  for  any  of  the  Ross  family  to  leave  the  city  at  this 
time.     Is  it  not  possible  to  have  the  child  brought  to  our  office  ? 

Robinson. 
Answer: 

Monroe,  Michigan. 
Man  thinks  Ross  should  come  immediately,  or  child  will  be  removed. 

Signed,  Operator. 

To  Monroe,  Michigan : 

Philadelphia,  September  ii,  187S' 
I  will  submit  correspondence  to  Mr'.  Ross,  who  is  at  court,  and  answer. 
Afraid  clue  is  wrong.     Ross   cannot   leave   Philadelphia  now.     Why 
wont  Miller  give  particulars  ?     Try  and  get  them,  and  answer. 

Robinson. 
At  this  time  the  Superintendent  of  the  Telegraph 


350  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

Company  at  Detroit  was  informed  of  what  was  going 
over  the  wires  at  Monroe,  Michigan,  and  Philadel- 
phia, and  sent  the  following  message  to  Mr.  Merrihew, 
Superintendent  in  Philadelphia : 

Detroit,  MicmcAN,  September  a,  187S' 
James  Merrihew,  Superintendent  W.  U.  Telegraph  Company, 
Philadelphia. — Our  operator  at  Monroe  reports  that  Miller,  the  man 
who  has  been  in  correspondence  with  the  Ross  family,  is  confident  that 
Charley  is  in  Monroe.  Miller,  when  in  our  office,  declared  confidently 
that  he  was  not  mistaken.  It  is  worthy  of  further  investigation.  If  I 
can  render  Mr.  Ross  any  assistance,  call  on  me.  C.  Fox, 

Superintendent  fV,  U.  Telegraph  Co, 

To  which  Mr.  Merrihew  replied : 

Philadelphia,  September  2} 
C.  Fox,  Superintendent  W.  U.  Telegraph  Company,  Detroit, 
Michigan.— My  chief  clerk,  William  B.  Gill,  and  Manager  Robinson's 
brother,  are  in  the  West  somewhere.  I  will  endeavor  to  find  them,  and 
request  them  to  visit  Monroe  and  investigate  the  matter.  It  is  impossi- 
ble for  any  one  of  the  Ross  family  to  leave  the  city  at  this  time.  An 
important  trial  is  pending  which  requires  their  presence. 

J.  Merrihew,  Superintendent. 

The  next  thing  that  was  required  was  to  find  Messrs. 
Gill  and  Robinson,  and  the  following  message  was  sent 
to  Chicago,  111.: 

Philadelphia,  September  12,  187s. 
Joseph  W.  Robinson,  care  of  H.  C.  Maynard,  Manager,  Chicago, 
III. — We  have  a  report  of  a  child  at  Monroe,  Michigan,  answering  the 
description  of  Charley  Ross.  Ross  family  can't  leave  Philadelphia 
until  after  Westervelt  trial.  Will  you  and  Mr.  Gill  put  off  your  Denver 
trip,  and  run  down  to  Monroe,  investigate  the  case  and  report  result  by 
telegraph  ?  H.  C.  Robinson,  Manager, 

To  which  the  following  reply  was  sent: 

Chicago,  III.,  September  i2y  iSys- 
H.  C.  Robinson,  Philadelphia. — Your  brother  and  I  will  go.    Has 
Mr.  Ross  any  instructions  ?     We  start  to-night. 

Wm.  B.  Gill. 


CASES   OF  TRACED   CHILDREN.  35 1 

Mr.  Merrihew  replied  as  follows : 

Philadelphia,  September  12^  187S' 
W.  B.  Gill,  Chicago,  III. — See  the  child.     Mr.  Ross  says  Char- 
ley's eyes  are  hazel — no  approach  to  blue  or  gray,  might  readily  be 
taken  for  brown.     Question  the  child  and  report  the  answers. 

J.  Merrihew,  Superintendent. 

On  arriving  in  Monroe,  Michigan,  Mr.  Gill  sent  the 
following  telegram : 

Monroe,  Michigan,  September  13,  i?>7S' 

H.  Robinson,  Philadelphia. — Arrived  all  right.  Boy  is  about 
twenty  miles  back  in  this  country — we'll  hire  wagon  and  drive  over; 
tell  Mr.  Ross.  W.  B.  Gill. 

After  seeing  the  child  they  returned  to  .Ypsilanti, 
the  nearest  telegraph  station,  and  sent  the  following 

message : 

Ypsilanti,  Michigan,  September  14, 187$- 
H.  C.  Robinson,  Philadelphia. — Child  is  wrong  sure.    We  went 
to  school-house  to-day,  and  Mr.  Gill  did  the  questioning.     There  are 
matters  to  be  investigated  at  Detroit ;  will  telegraph  again  from  there. 

Joseph  Robinson. 

When  they  arrived  in  Detroit,  they  examined  into 
the  matter  which  was  connected  with  the  case  in  that 
city,  and  sent  the  following  message  • 

Detroit,  Michigan,  September  18,  187J. 
H.  C.  Robinson,  Philadelphia. — We  stopped  over  here  and  find 
out  that  the  child  near  Monroe  is  a  foundling ;  was  taken  from  Children's 
Home  at  Detroit.    It  is  not  Uhakley  Ross. 

Joseph  Robinson. 

Messrs.  Gill  and  Robinson  further  reported,  after  their 
return  to  Philadelphia,  that  on  arriving  in  Monroe  they 
acquainted  the  City  Marshal  with  the  object  of  their 
visit,  who  kindly  consented  to  aid  them  in  looking  for 
and  examining  the  child.  They  found  Miller,  the  per- 
son who  sent  the  first  information,  and  learned  that  he 
really  knew  nothing,  except  what  he   heard  from  his 


352  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

daughter.  She  was  then  visited,  and  her  story  was  that 
a  child  in  the  Belleville  School,  who  was  a  stranger, 
bore  so  striking  a  resemblance  to  the  pictures  of  Char- 
ley Ross,  as  to  warrant  the  belief  that  he  was  really 
the  stolen  child. 

The  gentlemen  visited  the  school,  and  after  question- 
ing the  boy  a  few  moments,  they  were  convinced  he 
was  not  Charley  Ross;  and  also  found  out  that 
he  was  called  Jimmy  Angell,  and  that  he  was  the 
adopted  son  of  a  family  of  that  name  living  about  four 
miles  from  Belleville,  and  his  home,  while  attending 
school,  was  with  his  adopted  grand-parents,  who  reside 
in  that  village.  They  also  learned  that  the  child  had 
been  taken  from  the  Detroit  Home  of  the  Friendless. 

At  Detroit  the  statement  of  Mr.  AngcU  was  confirmed 
by  the  record  of  the  institution  and  by  the  matron. 
The  child  in  question  had  been  found  in  Mr.  J.  W.  Fris- 
bee's  yard,  December  28,  1869.  He  was  then  appa- 
rently about  three  weeks  old,  and  Mr.  Frisbee  sent  him 
to  the  Home,  where  he  was  registered  under  the  name 
of  James  W.  Frisbee,  and  on  the  28th  of  January,  1870, 
he  was  given  to  Mr.  Angell,  who  lives  near  Monroe. 
Here  the  matter  ended,  and  all  the  certainty  which  Mr. 
Miller  expressed  as  to  this  child  being  my  little  boy 
was  reduced,  when  he  was  questioned,  to  a  very  slen- 
der thread.  I  have  given  the  telegraphic  correspond- 
ence in  this  case  in  full,  believing  it  will  be  interesting 
to  the  public  to  know  in  what  way  we  endeavor  to  in- 
vestigate cases  by  the  facilities  afforded  us  in  the  use 
of  the  telegraph  wires. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP — CHILDREN   TRACED   IN 
THE   UNITED    STATES   AND   NOVA   SCOTIA. 


MONG  the  later  incidents  connected  with  the 
search  for  my  httle  son,  none  caused  greater 
public  excitement  for  a  short  time  than  the 
following  letters,  the  first  of  which  was  received  on  the 
4th  of  September,  1875.     It  is  here  given : 

Mr.  Ross. 

If  you  will  find  the  address  of  william  or  "Walter  Baker,  and  let  me 
know  through  the  paper,  you  shall  have  you  son.  Baker  is  the  only 
man  who  hands  I  will  trust  it  in.  You  boy  is  alive,  but  will  take  time 
for  to  get  him.  Advertise  for  Walter  or  William  Baker,  who  wonce 
lived  at  George's  Station,  S.  C.  I  think  he  is  in  Philadelphia.  I  want 
this  thing  settled  soon,  for  I  am  worried  to  deth  about  it.  I  want  to 
leave  the  country  and  I  want  you  to  have  you  boy,  as  our  game  is  now 
gone  up.  I  did  not  take  him,  but  was  to  have  a  shair  in  the  money. 
I  know  where  he  is  and  you  shall  have  him  in  5  weeks — no  sooner 
— and  no  money.  Westervell  don't  know  where  he  is.  Nor  does  Mrs. 
Mosher.     I  am  the  only  one.     I  want  to  get  out  of  it  the  best  I  can. 

Don't  publish  this,  but  hold  quiet  and  find  Baker,  and  believe  me  I 
know.  When  you  have  found  the  address  of  Baker  put  this  in  the 
pursnel  column  of  the  Ledger. 

One  of  the  4.     I  have  found  him. 

Don't  show  this  to  the  newspaper  men,  for  I  want  it  quiet,  and  1 
work  fast  now.     I  pity  you  much.  I  OF  the  4. 

To  find  Mr.  Baker  (the  person  mentioned  in  this  let- 
ter) I  inserted,  in  the  personal  column  of  the  Ptiblic 
Ledger y  the  following  advertisement: 


354  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Wdl  Walter  or  Wmiam  Baker,  late  of  George*s  Station,  S.  C,  send 
me  his  address?  C.  K.  Ross, 

306  Market  Street. 

The  publication  of  this  advertisement  brought  Mr. 
Baker  to  my  place  of  business  promptly  the  next  morn- 
ing. After  introducing  himself,  he  inquired  what  I 
wanted  with  him.  Holding  up  the  anonymous  letter 
at  a  distance,  so  that  he  could  see  the  hand-writing,  I 
asked,  "  Do  you  recognize  that  writing  ?"  "Why,  that 
looks  like  Nelse  Booth's,"  he  replied  "WTio  is  Nelse 
Booth  ?'•  I  asked.  "A  man  who  about  two  years  ago 
worked  with  me  in  South  Carolina,"  he  replied.  On 
further  questioning,  he  stated  that  he  became  ac- 
quainted with  Booth  while  in  the  army,  and  after  the 
war  had  met  him  at  George's  Station,  South  Carolina, 
where  he  obtained  employment  for  him,  but  had  not 
seen  him  or  heard  from  him  for  a  period  of  eighteen 
months.  Baker  did  not  regard  Booth  as  the  right 
kind  of  a  man,  as  he  had  proposed  to  him  one  or  t^'O 
enterprises  which  he  could  not  conscientiously  approve. 
He  also  said  that  Booth  called  himself  Nelse  Laurie, 
also  Sprague.  I  told  him  the  contents  of  the  letter. 
He  seemed  surprised,  and  declared  he  knew  nothing 
about  the  matter.  Obtaining  Baker's  address,  I  put 
the  following  in  the  personal  colunm  of  the  Ledger  on 
the  7th  of  September : 

One  of  the  four.     I  have  foimd  him. 

The  same  morning  I  received  the  following  letter: 

Mr.  Ross:-^ 

Yoa  sfaoold  have  let  me  know  hb  address  throvgh  the  Ledger.  I 
have  ererfthiag  ready  when  I  know  where  he  is.  Let  me  know  in  the 
59Bar|Mt  his  Post  office  or  the  name  and  number  of  the  street.  Yoa  can 
pot  h  in  tiie  **  Starbeam**  colmnn  or  the  **  FefSonaT*  cobonn.     Yon  are 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         35$ 

delaying  me.  Hurry  up  and  keep  quiet  Let  your  nodce  be  this 
way: — 

♦    ♦    W.  B., P.O., 

or  the  number  of  the  street.  Pill  the  blank  with  the  name  or  number 
of  the  street  or  city.  Thb  must  be  closed  to-morrow,  for  I  must  get  this 
man.  I  will  give  a  full  account  to  [him]  but  to  no  one  else.  So  make 
haste.  *        * 

In  answer  to  which  I  published  in  the  evening  paper 
the  same  day —  i 

Walter  Baker,  No.  1 619  Market  Street,  Philadelphia. 

This  advertisement  was  received  at  the  newspaper 
office  too  late  for  classification,  and  appeared  only  in 
the  last  edition  in  an  obscure  comer,  so  that  I  had  dif- 
ficulty in  finding  it  Nevertheless  Baker  came  to  see 
me  early  next  morning,  to  know  why  I  had  published 
his  name  and  address.  I  explained  it  to  him,  and  ex- 
pressed surprise  that  he  should  have  seen  the  adver- 
tisement He  stated  that  his  attention  had  been  called 
to  it  by  a  person  who  knew  him.  I  told  him  I  suj>- 
posed  he  would  get  a  communication  of  some  kind, 
and  that  I  desired  to  see  it  as  soon  as  he  received  it 
In  the  meantime,  I  went  to  the  telegraph  office  to 
learn  something  of  Baker  and  Booth,  the  professed 
writer  of  the  letters.  I  found  that  Baker  had  lived  at 
George's  Station,  and  that  nothing  objectionable  was 
known  of  him  while  in  that  place,  and  that  Laurie 
under  the  name  of  Booth  had  also  resided  there  a 
short  time,  and  but  little  was  known  of  him.  Baker's 
description  and  his  story  of  him  were  confirmed.  After 
leaving  George's  Station  he  had  written  several  letters 
to  Baker  and  one  to  another  person,  in  which  he  signed 
his  name  Nelse  Laurie,  and  said  he  had  written  Baker 
several  times  and  got  no  reply,  and  inquired  whether 


356  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

he  was  still  in  the  place.  Subsequently  by  letters  I  re- 
ceived full  descriptions  and  history  of  both  Baker  and 
Booth  while  they  lived  in  George's  Station.  Our  sus- 
picions were  now  aroused  that  this  was  another 
scheme  to  practice  a  deception  of  some  kind,  and  we 
awaited  further  developments.  Very  soon  after  leaving 
me,  the  same  day  on  which  my  last  advertisement 
appeared,  Baker  returned  with  a  letter  which  he  said 
he  found  at  his  hotel,  written  by  the  same  person  who 
had  been  writing  to  me,  and  whom  he  declared  to  be 
Nelse  Booth.     The  letter  is  as  follows  : 

Baker  :— 

I  said  if  Mr.  Ross  let  me  know  where  you  was  I  would  tell  where 
Charley  Ross  was.  So  I  will.  Baker.  You  have  been  a  good  friend  to 
me  and  give  me  good  advice  when  we  was  down  South.  You  kept  me 
out  of  a  scrape  and  set  me  up  for  to  get  home.  Now,  if  you  will  follow 
my  advice  you  shall  have  the  honor  of  finding  Charley  Ross,  as  I  had  a 
hand  in  stealing  him.  I  want  you,  and  no  one  but  you,  to  go.  If  you 
don't  go,  as  I  say,  you,  nor  Mr.  Ross  either,  will  ever  get  him.  I  will 
know  all  about  it  if  you  go. 

Charley  Ross  is  in  England.  Go  first  to  Liverpool,  then  to  Brad« 
ford.  He  is  somewhere  between  there  and  York.  He  was  placed  in 
the  hands  of  a  family  who  now  is  in  there  somewhere.  Thare  people 
who  calls  them  gipsies,  but  thare  not  gipsies.  But  thare  traveling  with 
a  wagon  where  I  say.  You  must  go  there  very  careful!,  or  you  will  not 
get  him.  You  had  better  travel  as  a  tramp  and  overhaul  every  band  ol 
gipsies  you  find  in  October. 

After  he  was  taken  we  all  got  skeared  and  he  was  left  in  my  cair. 
I  did  not  want  to  kill  him,  as  Bill  mosher  did,  for  I  was  in  enough  sin, 
and  wanted  to  get  out  of  what  I  was  in.  But  I  am  not  out  of  it  yet,  and 
I  will  never  be  contented  until  the  boy  is  home  again.  So  for  God's 
sake  try  your  best  to  get  him. 

His  hair  is  cut  off  close,  his  skin  is  dark  from  being  in  the  sun,  and 
his  front  teeth  is  out.  This  family  thinks  he  is  my  son,  and  I  told  them 
his  mother  wanted  to  get  him  and  to  be  very  careful  not  to  let  any  body 
iave  him,  never,  or  deih  would  be  their  doom.  The  family  was  in 
York  State  when  I  gave  it  to  them.     The  head  man's  name  is  Gusto, 


A  MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  35/ 

and  I  heard  from  him  by  letter  in  July  or  August,  I  forget  which,     Mr. 
Ross  and  you  is  all  I  want  to  know  anything  about  it. 

This  what  1  sign  is  not  my  name,  but  by  it  you  will  know  who  I  am. 
The  letter  I  got  from  Gusto  was  rote  at  Bradford,  and  he  said  he  was 
going  to  New  Hilton,  by  the  way  of  York.  Nelse  Boothe. 

I  now  told  Baker  that  Booth,  alias  Laurie,  must  be 
found,  and  to  clear  himself  of  complicity  in  this  affair, 
he  must  put  us  in  the  way  of  getting  him.  He  said  he 
would  do  anything  required  of  him  to  help  us  in  the 
case;  he  did  not  want  to  go  to  England,  and  would  not 
go,  neither  did  he  want  any  money;  it  was  all  a  mys- 
tery to  him,  and  he  could  not  understand  why  he  had 
been  written  to  about  the  matter.  In  the  presence  of 
Baker,  I  prepared  the  following  personal,  and  signed  it 
with  his  initials : 

Should  like  to  have  a  personal  interview  with  you.  W.  T.  B. 

He  was  instructed  at  the  same  time  to  make  a  dili- 
gent search  for  Booth,  and  report  to  me  if  he  succeeded 
in  finding  him.  The  publication  of  the  above  promptly 
brought  the  following  response  addressed  to  Baker: 

I  seen  your  notice  to-day  in  Star.  I  won't  come  and  see  you.  You 
are  putting  a  job  up  on  me.  I  won't  write  no  more,  so  that  ends  it. 
You  will  find  the  boy  where  I  say,  and  by  the  time  you  get  this  I  will 
be  in  York  [meaning  New  York,  probably].  I  got  money  and  you 
can't  catch  me  in  no  trap.  Do  as  I  say  and  you  will  succeed.  Some 
detective  has  put  you  up  to  this.  What  I  have  said  is  true,  so  help  me 
God. 

You  can't  know  any  more  if  you  see  me,  for  I  don't  know.  You  want 
to  see  me  only  for  to  cop  me.  You  will  never  see  me  again.  So  good- 
by  bye.  I  didn't  think  you  would  try  that  game  after  I  told  all.  I  am 
the  only  one  who  knows  where  he  is.  Nelse  B. 

This  note  was  also  brought  to  me  upon  its  receipt 
On  the  following  day.  Baker  told  me  that  on  his  way 
home  the  evening  before  he  was  hailed  by  a  man  and 


35 S  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

woman,  both  entire  strangers  to  him.  The  man  said, 
"  You  are  Mr.  Baker,  formerly  of  South  Carolina,  I  be- 
lieve. A  person  wishes  to  see  you  at  tlie  West  Phila- 
delphia depot  to-morrow  morning  at  seven  o'clock.  Will 
you  be  there  ?"  Baker  replied  that  he  would,  and  asked 
the  name  of  the  person.  The  stranger  told  him  he 
would  recognize  the  man  at  once,  and  refused  to  an- 
swer any  questions.  He  said  he  sent  for  me  to  be 
there  also,  but  I  did  not  receive  the  message  in  time. 
Baker  went  at  the  hour  named,  and  while  looking  for 
the  person  who  had  so  mysteriously  summoned  him, 
his  South  Carolma  acquaintance,  Nelse  Booth,  alias 
Laurie,  grasped  his  hand,  saying,  "  I  am  the  man  who 
wants  to  see  you,  because  you  were  my  friend  when  I 
needed  one;  I  determined  to  tell  the  Charley  Ross 
affair  to  you,  and  to  no  one  else."  He  reiterated  what 
was  said  in  his  letters,  and  told  Baker  to  turn  the  in- 
formation to  good  account  in  a  pecuniary  way.  While 
they  were  conversing  the  train  moved  off;  the  man 
jumped  aboard,  bade  him  good  bye,  saying  he  was 
going  where  it  was  useless  to  look  for  him.  I  now 
accused  Baker  of  being  in  collusion  with  some  one  in 
an  attempt  to  deceive  me,  which  he  positively  denied. 
I  required  him  to  give  me  the  address  of  his  friends, 
and  charged  him  not  to  change  his  residence  without 
informing  me,  saying  that  I  should  hold  him  responsi- 
ble until  this  matter  was  wholly  cleared  up.  At  this 
stage  of  the  case  I  learned  from  a  correspondent  of  a 
newspaper  in  another  city  that  he  had  information  of 
the  matter,  and  ask  him  to  suspend  its  publication  for 
a  few  days.  Although  little  confidence  was  placed  in 
the  story,  yet  it  was  thought  best  to  request  the  au- 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         359 

thorities  in  England  to  investigate  the  matter;  and 
without  further  delay  I  informed  the  commissioner  of 
police  in  London  of  the  case,  and  asked  him  to  have 
it  examined. 

After  the  publication  by  the  newspapers  of  the  cor- 
respondence Baker  handed  me  the  following  letter 
which  although  post-marked  and  mailed  in  Philadel- 
phia, October  the  8th,  is  dated  New  York,  October  the 
9th. 

New  York,  October  9. — Baker  :  You  are  a  dam  fool,  and  Ross  is 
crazy.  Now  you  are  in  danger.  I  tliought  you  had  more  sense.  Se 
hear,  you  have  almost  lost  your  chance  for  getting  the  boy.  What  made 
you  give  it  away.  You  must  now  do  as  I  say,  or  I  will  go  for  you,  sure, 
for  God  sake  don't  say  anything  to  any  one  now,  but  work  for  me.  I 
want  you  to  find  Gusto,  and  then  I  will  ensure  you  the  boy.  if  you  go 
to  Bradford,  Eng.,  and  make  inquiries,  you  can  find  him  easy.  You 
must  be  quiet  about  it  when  you  find  him,  which  is  very  easy  to  do.  I 
will  have  it  fixt,  for  I  will  manage  to  get  him  a  letter,  and  if  I  don't,  you 
go  as  I  say,  and  show  him  this,  this  winter  he  will  be  about  there  or 
York  i  know  this,  you  must  keep  from  Ross  and  everybody  else.  Here 
is  the  secret:  Gusto  Englis  name  is  Sam  Hurbet,  and  by  this  name  you 
will  find  him,  if  he  see  this  I  think  it  will  be  all  right,  tell  him  this :  the 
child  Boston  gave  you  in  New  York  is  Charley  Ross,"  and  then  tell  him 
who  Charley  Ross  is,  for  he  don't  know.  I  ought  to  kill  you,  for  you 
have  been  trying  you  best  to  nab  me.  do  as  i  say.  dam  you,  and  stop 
you  hunting  for  me.  I  want  Ross  to  have  his  boy.  you  Leave  next 
week,  and  you  can  succeed,  take  this  with  you,  and  don't  show  it  to  a 
living  sole,  but  Gusto  or  Herbert,  if  you  do,  I  will  murder  you.  so 
Beware  Baker.  From  you  know  Who. 

In  answer  to  which  the  following  personal  appeared 
in  the  Ledger  of  the  1 2th  : 

Boston.  Send  me  an  order  on  Herbert  to  deliver  him  to  me.  I  will 
go.  ^  Signed,  B. 

This  personal  brought  the  following  letter,  inclosing 
the  order  for  the  boy,  which  was  received  on  the  14th, 
postmarked  Philadelphia : 


360  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Baker,  I  seen  you  notice  yesterday.  I  ges  all  right,  i  will  not  rite 
any  more,  not  one  line,  but  I  want  Ross  to  have  his  boy,  and  you  get 
the  reward,  give  this  other  pape  to  Sam  Ilerbet,  or  gusto.  You  may 
the  help.     I  will  hear  all  about  it.  When  you  get  back.     Nelse  Booth. 

if  he  can*t  read,  you  read  it  to  him,  he  will  know  all  abot  it. 

The  order  addressed  on  an  outside  fold  to  "  Sam 
Herbert,"  is  as  follows : 

New  York,  America,  October  13,  1S7 S.—Sam  Hurhet :  Give  to  this 
man  Baker  my  little  boy,  which  I  gave  you  to  keep  for  me  last  October, 
in  York  State,  America.  I  have  sent  him  over  for  him.  I  have  made 
up  with  the  old  woman,  and  we  all  going  to  live  to  gither.  I  have  had 
a  big  stake,  and  I  ges  we  can  live  all  right.  If  I  owe  you  anything  send 
me  word  by  Baker  and  I  will  fix  it.  You  know  who  I  mean.  Little 
Charley  Sprague,  my  son.  Bake,  is  all  ready  to  come  to  York  Stale,  so 
don't  detain  him.     Oblige,  Hiram  Sprague,  your  old  friend,  Boston. 

Efforts  were  now  made  to  find  out  if  there  had  been 
a  man  answering  to  the  name  of  Gusto,  who  is  repre- 
sented to  have  been  in  South  Carolina,  and  it  was 
found  that  a  gipsey  band  under  the  leadership  of  such 
a  person  had  gone  from  Philadelphia  to  Savannah  a 
few  years  ago,  and  that  he  was  known  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  George's  Station ;  but  we  failed  to  trace  him 
from  that  point.  ,  Inquiries  were  made  and  registers 
were  searched  in  all  the  steamship  offices  in  New 
York,  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia,  whose  vessels  sail 
to  Savannah,  but  failed  to  discover  that  he  came  back 
by  either  of  the  lines.  Having  now  not  only  a  more 
limited  area  in  which  to  look  for  the  child,  but  also 
the  name  of  the  person  to  whom  Booth  chimed  that 
he  gave  him,  I  again  wrote  to  the  Chief  of  Police  in 
London  as  well  as  to  the  constabulary  in  all  the  rid- 
ings of  Yorkshire,  giving  them  all  the  information  we 
possessed,  and  asked  them  if  possible  to  trace  the 
parties.     How  promptly,  cheerfully  and  faithfully  the 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  36 1 

police  of  England  worked  in  the  case  is  best  told  by- 
extracts    from    letters    I   have    received,   dated  Chief 
Constable's  Office,  Leeds. 
The  Chief  writes  as  follows: 

23th  October,  i^75' 
Sir  : — I  have  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your  letter  inclosing  pho- 
tograph of  your  little  boy  who  was  stolen.  In  reply  I  have  to  state  that 
instructions  have  been  issued  to  have  the  most  searching  inquiries  made 
in  all  quarters  where  a  clue  may  possibly  be  obtained  within  the  borough. 
If  anything  should  be  heard  of  him  I  will  telegraph  you,  and  should  I 
be  able  to  obtain  any  information  about  the  man  Gusto,  I  shall  not  fail 
to  communicate  with  you  at  once. 

Owing  to  the  large  area  of  the  borough,  it  will  take  some  little  time 
to  exhaust  the  inquiry ;  but  no  time  will  be  lost. 
Your  most  obedient  servant, 

H.  Henderson,  Chief  Constable, 
Christian  K.  Ross,  Esq.,  Philadelphia,  U.  S.  A. 

And  again,  dated  Chief  Constable's  Office : 

Wakefield,  October  2^,  /^/j*. 
Dear  Sir  : — You  were  informed  by  my  chief  clerk  that  your  letter  of 
of  the  29th  ultimo  has  been  duly  forwarded  by  the  Metropolitan  Police. 
I  have  now  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  that  of  the  9th  inst.,  which 
disposed  of  the  difficulty  as  to  the  time  when  Gusto  would,  as  stated  by 
Booth,  be  travelling  between  Bradford  and  York.  The  most  prompt 
steps  have  been  taken  for  the  recovery  of  the  child,  and  I  trust  that  if 
anywhere  in  Yorkshire,  we  may  succeed  in  finding  him.  All  the  infor- 
mation furnished  up  to  the  present  time  has  been  collected  and  printed, 
and  has  been  issued  to  the  Police  of  this  Riding  as  well  as  to  the  bor- 
oughs. The  North  and  East  Riding  Police  have  also  been  furnished 
with  copies,  and  photographs  of  the  child  follow  by  this  night's  post. 

If  we  should  be  successful,  every  care  shall  be  taken  of  the  child,  and 
you  shall  be  communicated  with  at  once,  etc.,  etc.     I  am,  dear  sir. 
Yours  faithfully, 

Duncan  McNeill,  Chief  Constable, 
To  C.  K.  Ross,  Esq.,  Philadelphia,  U.  S.  A. 

Mr.  McNeill  writes  again  as  follows : 

Wakefield,  October  26,  iSfS* 
Dear  Sir: — In  reply  to  your  letter  of  the  13th  inst.,  received  this 
16 


362  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

morning,  I  beg  to  inform  you  that  the  additional  information  given  will 
be  issued  by  this  evening's  post,  and  if  Gusto  alias  Sam  Herbert  >s  in 
this  county,  I  hojie  he  may  be  found.  It  is  difficult  to  understand  why 
Booth  should  give  the  boy  to  Gusto  in  place  of  taking  steps  indirectly  to 
secure  the  reward  offered  ;  but  in  any  case  if  Booth's  whereabouts  can- 
not by  any  means,  be  discovered,  the  channel  of  communication  through 
Baker  should  be  kept  up,  and  the  latter  should  be  stimulated  by  hope  of 
a  reward.  I  shall  be  obliged  by  your  forwarding  all  information  you  can 
collect,  no  matter  how  trivial,"  and  should  be  glad  also  if  anything  more 
precise  can  be  discovered  as  to  the  habits  and  calling  of  Sam.  Herbert, 
with  a  description  of  him,  if  possible,  etc.,  etc.  I  am,  dear  sir. 
Yours  faithfully, 

Duncan  McNeill,  ChUf  Constable,  West  Riding, 
To  C.  K.  Ross,  Esq.,  Philadelphia,  U.  S.  A 

Again  he  writes : 

Chief  Constable's  Office,  Wakefield,  October  ji,  iSjs* 

Dear  Sir  : — On  the  28th  inst.  certain  information  was  received  from 
the  Chief  Constable  of  Leeds  in  reference  to  a  child  seen  there  on  the 
13th  inst.,  and  was  issued  to  the  Police  of  Riding  and  neighboring  juris- 
dictions on  the  same  night.  As,  however,  the  Chief  Constable  of  Leeds 
mentioned  having  written  to  you,  I  think  it  right  to  tell  you  that  the 
woman  and  children  alluded  to  by  him  have  been  found,  and  it  has 
been  made  clear  after  the  most  careful  investigation  that  all  the  children 
are  her  own ;  nor  do  any  of  them  answer  the  description  given  by  you. 
At  present  I  cannot  hear  anything  of  Gusto  alias  Herbert;  but  continued 
exertions  shall  be  made  with  a  view  of  discovering  his  whereabouts. 

The  likeness  of  your  boy  which  has  been  circulated  is  evidently  from 
a  drawing  or  photograph;  will  you  please  inform  me  when  the  original 
Was  taken ;  will  you  also  forward  to  me  direct  any  information  you  may 
procure,  as,  by  so  doing,  much  time  will  be  saved.     I  am,  dear  sir, 
Yours  faithfully, 

Duncan  McNeill,  Chief  Constable. 

Christian  K.  Ross,  Philadelphia, 

To  the  above  letter  I  replied  as  follows: 

Philadelphia,  Niwember  16,  iSyj. 

Duncan  McNeill,  Esq.,  Chief  Constable,  W.  R.  Yorkshire. — 
Dear  Sir: — Your  esteemed  favor  of  the  31st  ultimo  is  to  hand.  I  enclose 
you  a  copy  of  the  original  photograph  of  my  little  boy  from  which  the 
one  I  sent  you  some  time  ago  was  taken,  after  being  magnified  and 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  363 

altered  by  an  artist  under  instructions  from  Mrs.  Ross.  This  was  the 
only  one  we  had;  Charley  was  two  and  a  half  years  old  at  the  time  it 
was  taken.  He  was  four  years  and  two  months  when  he  was  taken 
from  us,  and  now  would  be  five  years  and  four  months  old. 

We  did  not  consider  the  enlarged  photograph  perfect;  his  mouth 
should  be  a  little  more  closed.  In  taking  the  small  picture  I  now  send 
you,  his  attention  was  attracted  to  some  object,  which  caused  him  to  be 
excited  and  open  his  mouth;  and  we  did  not  have  that  part  of  his  face 
altered  for  fear  the  artist  should  lose  the  general  expression  of  the  face. 
Of  course  we  expect  he  would  be  changed  somewhat  in  his  appearance 
according  to  the  treatment  he  has  received  since  he  was  stolen ;  but  still 
we  think  his  general  expression  would  remain.  I  have  no  further  infor- 
mation to  communicate,  except  that  I  fear  this  supposed  clue  will  termi- 
nate, like  so  many  others  have,  in  a  confidence  game  of  some  sort,  as  I 
wrote  the  Commissioner  of  Police  in  my  first  letter.  As  yet  we  have 
been  unable  to  find  out  the  object  the  parties  had  in  view;  and  lest  I 
should  fail  of  the  right  thing,  I  feel  it  my  duty  to  investigate  everything 
that  has  any  probability  in  it.  Should  I  receive  any  further  information, 
you  may  be  assured  I  will  at  once  communicate  it  to  you. 

Mrs.  Ross  has  had  a  very  kind  letter  from  a  lady  (I  think  Mrs.  Bar- 
clay) who  resides  in  your  neighborhood,  and  I  think  she  said  she  was 
acquainted  with  you  or  had  been  to  see  you  in  reference  to  our  little 
Charley.  Should  you  see  her,  please  give  her  our  warmest  thanks. 
Thanking  you  for  the  interest  you  have  manifested  in  our  behalf, 

I  remain  yours  truly,  Christian  K.  Ross. 

Several  other  letters  were  received  reporting  that  ac- 
tive efforts  continued  to  be  made  to  discover  the  ob- 
jects of  their  search,  and  the  final  report  is  as  follows : 
Chief  Constable's  Office,  Wakefield,  February  g,  1876. 

Dear  Sir. — I  had  intended  writing  to  you  before,  but  had  hoped  I 
might  have  something  to  communicate.  I  much  regret  to  say  that  our 
inquiries  have  so  far  been  to  no  purpose ;  and  notwithstanding  the  active 
cooperation  given  by  the  Police  of  the  Northern  counties,  I  have  been 
unable  to  find  any  reliable  clue.  It  is  true  that  once  or  twice  information 
reached  me  which  I  had  hoped  might  be  turned  to  good  account;  but  on 
working  out  these  cases  and  closely  sifting  the  statements  made,  we  found 
ourselves  without  any  solid  ground  to  carry  us  further.  The  publicity 
given  in  America  and,  indeed,  possibly  on  this  side  also,  has  been  the 
means  of  suggesting  the  names  of  Gusto  and  Herbert,  which  have  been 


3^4  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

repeated  without  any  real  intention  to  deceive ;  but  I  can  find  no  good 
reason  to  suspect  that  the  first-mentioned  name  has  ever  been  heard 
here;  and  the  second,  tho'  of  course  we  find  it  occurring  now  and 
then,  has  no  individual  bearing  that  we  can  discover  on  the  question  at 
issue,  as  it  is  a  name  one  would  expect  to  find.  I  regret  I  cannot  give 
a  more  hopeful  report;  but  at  the  same  time  I  beg  you  will  remember 
that  you  may  at  all  times  depend  upon  the  fullest  assistance  from  this 
office  and  indeed  the  English  Police  generally ;  and  if  any  further  infor- 
mation however  trivial  is  received,  I  shall  be  glad  if  you  will  inform 
me  without  delay.  Mrs.  Barclay  does  not  reside  in  this  neighborhood, 
but  I  know  her  as  a  most  kind-hearted  person,  who  has  taken  a  deep 
interest  »n  this  case.  Her  sister  Mrs.  Leatham  lives  here,  and  has  also 
been  most  anxious  and  kind.  I  return  all  your  papers.  We  have  ail 
the  information  filed.  Our  officers  will  remain  on  the  alert  in  case  any 
clue  should  be  obtained.     I  am,  dear  sir, 

Yours  faithfully, 

DiwcAN  McNeill, 
Chief  OmstabU^  W,  R.  Yorkshire, 
C.  K.  Ross,  Esq.,  Philadelphia,  U.  S.  A. 

To  the  above  letter   the  following   rcplv  was  sent, 

dated 

Philadelphia,  February  -j,  1876. 

Dear  Sir. — Your  favor  of  the  9th  inst.  with  enclosures  reached  me  a 
few  days  ago. 

I  am  very  much  obliged  to  you  and  the  police  generally  of  England 
who  have  taken  so  much  interest  in  tr)'ing  to  serve  me,  and  am  well  sat- 
isfied if  the  parties  you  have  been  looking  after  had  been  in  your  country 
you  would  have  found  some  traces  of  them.  I  now  believe,  as  I  have 
for  some  time  past,  that  there  wa5  a  scheme  of  some  kind  to  blackmail 
me ;  but  the  parties  were  afraid  to  go  on  with  it  on  account  of  the  pub- 
licity given  to  the  matter.  Many  attempts  of  this  kind  have  been  made 
before,  however  without  success. 

I  know  of  nothing  just  now  that  I  can  ask  you  to  look  after;  but 
would  thank  you  for  the  cheerfulness  and  promptitude  with  which  you 
investigated  this  supposed  clue. 

The  mystery  connected  with  the  continued  absence  of  my  little  son 
still  remams.  I  have  no  reliable  information  as  to  what  has  been  done 
with  him ;  whether  he  still  lives  or  whether  he  is  dead.  The  knowledge 
ol  the  latter,  if  it  is  so,  would  be  a  relief  to  my  wife  and  myself,  as  this 
protracted  suspeiise  is  very  wearing  on  us. 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  365 

Again,  accept  my  thanks  for  your  devotion  and  interest  in  the  cause 
of  human  suffering ;  and  believe  me  ever 

Yours  truly, 

Christian  K.  Ross. 
Duncan  McNeill,  Esq.,  Chief  Constable,  W.  R.  Yorkshire,  England, 

One  of  the  cases  to  which  Mr.  McNeill  alludes  in  his 
last  letter,  which  for  a  time  bade  fair  to  end  favorably, 
was  that  the  chief  constable  of  the  North  Riding  as- 
certained that  two  gipsy  wagons,  one  reported  to  be 
marked  "  Herbert,"  and  the  other  "  Gusto,"  were  at  a 
village  near  Middlesborough,  and  the  gipsies  were  said 
to  have  with  them  a  child  about  the  same  age  as  our 
Charley,  who  had  a  genteel  appearance,  and  a  com- 
plexion very  different  from  that  of  any  of  his  compan- 
ions, and  who  had  a  striking  resemblance  to  the  missing 
child.  Particular  instructions  were  immediately  issued 
to  every  station  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  constable 
to  be  on  the  look-out.  Very  soon  the  party  was  found, 
the  child  in  a  wagon  by  itself,  while  the  ostensible 
parents  were  selling  their  wares.  Taking  him  to  the 
station-house,  he  was  examined  by  the  Superintendent, 
who  also  compared  the  likeness  of  Charley  Ross  with 
him,  and  was  satisfied  that  he  was  not  my  son.  The 
man  and  woman  with  whom  the  child  was  found  said 
he  was  their  grandchild,  and  gave  the  place  in  which 
his  father  resided.  The  father  was  visited,  and  by  his 
statement  confirmed  the  authorities  that  it  was  a  case 
of  mistaken  identity  on  the  part  of  those  reporting  the 
matter.  It  was  also  found  that  the  wagons  had  not 
been  marked  as  represented. 

The  publication  of  this  case  in  the  newspapers  of 
England  and  Scotland  awakened  anew  the  interest  in 


366  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Great  Britain,  and  many  strangers  wrote  kind  letters  of 
inquiry  and  sympathy,  showing  the  deep  feehng  still 
existing  there  for  the  recovery  of  the  child,  whenever 
an  occasion  calls  it  forth.  A  few  extracts  from  letters 
received  in  the  correspondence  from  South  Carolina, 
which  abound  in  expression  of  the  liveliest  interest  and 
kindest  feelings,  cannot  fail  to  be  of  interest.  A  gen- 
tleman in  St.  George's  writes  under  date  of  October, 
1875: 

Though  in  doubt,  I  have  a  trembling  hope  that  there  may  be  some- 
thing in  this  which  may  yet  lead  to  the  discovery  of  your  Utile  Charley, 
and  his  restoration  to  your  hearts  and  arms  sound  and  well,  and  it  would 
be  a  life-long  satisfaction  should  I  in  any  way  be  able  to  assist  in  bring- 
ing about  such  a  happy  termination  to  this  great  trouble — this  crushing 
sorrow,  etc. 

Can  I  be  of  service  to  you  in  any  way  whatever  in  this  matter  ?  Do 
not  hesitate  to  let  me  know  either  by  mail  or  telegraph.  In  sincere 
sympathy,  I  am  yours  very  truly,  M.  W.  Kenyon. 

The  same  person  writes  again  under  date  of  Novem- 
ber 6th: 

Let  me  assure  you,  my  dear  sir,  my  interest  in  the  recovery  of  your 
little  Charley  is  not  of  recent  growth.  There  are  thousands  of  hearts 
throughout  our  land  in  sympathy  with  you,  and  the  joy  which  would  be 
felt  in  your  house  could  he  be  found,  would  send  a  thrill  in  sympathy 
through  thousands  of  other  households  that  you  would  never  know. 

Again  he  writes,  January  6th,  1876: 

Your  letter  of  the  i6th  of  November,  came  duly  to  hand.  We  sin- 
cerely thank  you  for  the  pictures  enclosed  of  your  two  little  boys.  The 
bright,  intelligent  countenance  of  Walter  is  much  admired,  but  for  his 
great  misfortune  the  picture  of  Charley  awakens  a  deeper  and  more 
tender  interest.  It  is  with  no  little  regret  that  I  am  unable  to  add  much 
to  the  information  already  given  in  regard  to  this  Booth  mystery.  I 
would  most  willingly  assist  you  in  any  way  that  I  could,  and  can  only 
deplore  my  inability.  I  would  be  glad  to  know  your  opinion  now  in 
regard  to  this  matter,  whether  you  still  think  it  a  heartless  fabrication  or 
otherwise,  etc. 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         36/ 

We  never  discovered  with  certainty  the  object  of  the 
parties  who  arranged  this  heartless  scheme.  That  there 
was  such  a  person  as  Nelse  Laurie,  ahas  Booth,  was 
satisfactorily  ascertained ;  but  whether  he  wrote  the 
letters  I  received  was  not  certainly  found  out.  His 
usual  handwriting,  a  specimen  of  which  we  obtained, 
was  pronounced  by  experts  not  to  correspond  with  the^ 
writing  of  the  letters  addressed  to  me,  and  which  Baker 
said  were  written  by  Booth.  As  to  the  man  Gusto, 
alias  Herbert,  nothing  more  was  learned  of  him,  than 
that  he  went  with  his  wagons,  women  and  children, 
several  years  ago  to  Savannah,  Georgia,  on  one  of  the 
steam  vessels  running  from  this  port.  The  only  con- 
clusion we  could  arrive  at  was,  that  the  whole  thing 
was  gotten  up  for  the  purpose  of  extortion,  and  who- 
ever devised  the  plan  had  either  not  skill  enough  to 
carry  it  out,  or  became  alarmed  on  account  of  the  sus- 
picions which  were  expressed  after  the  second  letter 
was  received.  It  however  occasioned  much  labor  in 
telegraphing  and  corresponding,  before  we  were  satis- 
fied that  thore  was  really  nothing  reliable  in  his  story. 

In  no  instance  which  we  have  investigated  have  so 
many  reports  of  the  same  child  come  to  us  from  differ- 
ent towns,  as  that  of  a  child  with  a  woman,  who  were 
first  made  known  to  us  from  Thomaston,  Connecticut. 
In  November,  1875,  I  received  a  letter,  dated  Thomas- 
ton,  in  which  the  writer  says :  "  There  is  a  woman  trav- 
eling through  the  county  with  a  child,  evidently  not 
her  own.  The  woman  is  described  to  be  of  dark  com- 
plexion, with  dark  hair  and  eyes;  and  the  child  is  about 
five  years  old,  with  light  complexion,  full  face,  rosy 
cheeks,  light  hair,  and  very  large  dark  eyes.     Some- 


368  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

times  he  is  dressed  in  girl's,  at  other  times  in  boy's 
clothing."  The  woman  was  said  to  tell  different  stories 
about  herself  and  the  child,  and  the  writer  suspected 
she  had  the  stolen  boy  with  her.  A  description  and 
photograph  of  Charley  was  sent  on  receipt  of  this 
letter,  with  a  request  that  the  writer  would  obtain  a 
picture  of  the  child,  and  send  it  to  me.  By  return  mail 
I  received  a  second  letter,  saying  that  the  woman  and 
child  had  gone  away,  but  would  be  followed.  The  next 
day  I  received  the  following  telegram,  dated  Thomas- 
ton,  Connecticut: 

I  have  found  the  woman  and  child;  no  doubt  your  child.  I  shall  re- 
quire authority  to  arrest  her.  Signed.  

The  telegraph  operator  in  Thomaston  was  requested 
to  find  the  person  who  sent  the  above  telegram,  and 
bring  him  into  the  office  in  that  place.  After  consider- 
able delay  he  was  found,  but  declined  to  give  any  fur- 
ther information,  or  to  act  in  the  matter  himself,  unless 
he  had  the  proper  authority.  The  following  telegram 
was  now  sent  to  the  operator: 

Send  for  the  Mayor,  Chief  of  Police,  or  Sheriff,  and  invite  them,  or 
either  of  them,  to  the  cQice.  This  matter  is  so  important  that  we  must 
have  the  woman  and  child  detained  until  the  matter  is  thoroughly  inves- 
tigated. 

When  the  Sheriff  came  to  the  telegraph  office,  the 
operator  was  instructed  to  say  to  him  that — 

The  Chief  of  Police  of  Philadelphia  is  in  the  office  here,  and  says  that 
this  matter  has  an  important  look ;  that  no  harm  can  come  of  bringing 
the  child  to  the  office,  and  detaining  the  woman  and  child  until  an  in- 
vestigation is  made.  We  can  tell  in  a  very  few  moments  if  there  is  any- 
thing in  it,  and  if  the  woman  is  innocent  she  will  cheerfully  submit,  and 
if  guilty  she  must.  The  Chief  wants  to  know  how  long  it  will  take  to 
bring  the  child  to  the  telegraph  office* 


A   MYSTERY   NOT    CLEARED   UP.  369 

The  Sheriff  replied  to  the  above,  that  he  would  go 
after  them,  and  return  in  about  two  and  half  hours. 
On  the  return  of  the  Sheriff  he  telegraphed : 

The  woman  has  gone  with  the  boy ;  I  do  not  think  him  the  Ross 
boy;  the  majority  of  the  people  I  have  seen  say  the  child's  eyes  are  blue, 
some  say  grey;  and  the  woman,  I  think,  is  honest.  She  told  the  same 
story  in  three  different  places  at  which  I  traced  her.  Have  written  full 
particulars.  Chatfield,  Dep.  Sheriff. 

The  Sheriff's  letter,  which  came  to  hand  the  follow- 
ing day,  gave  a  full  and  satisfactory  account  of  his  in- 
vestigation, and  we  supposed  the  matter  was  ended. 
Not  so,  however ;  on  the  same  day  I  received  a  tele- 
gram from  Newtown,  Connecticut,  saying 

I  have  the  Thomaston  woman  and  child.     Answer  quickly. 

Bray. 

The  question  was  asked  of  Mr.  Bray,  "  What  is  the 
color  of  the  child's  eyes?"  Answer:  "Blue,  or  rather 
grayish."  To  which  I  replied  :  "  Release  the  parties ; 
not  my  Charley;"  and  received  the  following  reply: 

Have  released  woman  and  boy ;  description  answers  to  Charley  all 
but  the  eyes — these  change  Jin  children.  Woman  acted  suspiciously  f 
ought  to  be  investigated.     Have  written  fully.  Bray 

Mr.  Bray  wrote  as  follows : 

"While  driving  between  the  towns  of  Oxford  and  Southbury,  I  passed 
a  woman  tramp,  who  had  a  small  boy ;  and  on  the  following  day,  I  met 
the  same  woman  and  child.  The  boy's  face  was  covered  up  with  a  veil; 
as  I  passed  them  she  gave  the  child  a  piece  of  apple,  and  as  the  veil  was 
raised,  I  noticed  the  complexion  of  the  boy  was  light,  as  was  also  his 
hair;  while  that  of  the  woman  was  dark  and  swarthy.  I  found  on 
arriving  at  Birmingham  that  telegrams  regarding  the  Thomaston  woman 
and  boy  had  been  passing,  and  concluded  that  the  woman  and  child  I 
had  seen  were  the  same  persons ;  I  immediately  notified  our  Chief  of 
Police,  and  we  started  and  overtook  them.  The  woman's  answers  to 
our  questions  are  anything  but  straight.  She  said  she  was  on  her  way 
to  Danbury,  Connecticut,  to  her  friends,  but  had  forgotten  their  names, 
16* 


370  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

etc.  She  is  certainly  a  very  suspicious  character,  and  so  far  as  appear- 
ances go  is  not  the  mother  of  the  child,  which  she  claims  to  be.  The 
boy  is  a  bright  little  fellow,  I  should  judge  about  five  years  old,  and  has 
eyes  of  a  bluish  gray,  which  might  have  been  blue  at  one  time.  Had 
there  been  a  photographer  in  the  town,  I  would  have  had  his  picture 
taken  and  sent  to  you ;  but  if  you  will  write  to  the  Mayor  of  Danbury,  he 
will  have  one  taken,  and  give  all  other  information  you  desire,  as  the 
woman  will  probably  remain  in  the  vicinity  of  Danbury  for  a  day  or  two. 
This  is  the  Thomaston  child,  so  that  matter  is  settled. 

Yours  in  sympathy,  M.  P.  Bray. 

The  people  in  all  the  villages  through  which  the 
woman  passed  seemed  now  to  be  aroused,  as  letters 
came  almost  daily  from  different  places,  describing  the 
parties.  Although  satisfied  that  the  child  was  not 
Charley,  yet  feeling  a  desire  to  have  a  picture  of  the 
boy  about  whom  so  much  excitement  had  been  raised, 
I  wrote  to  an  officer  in  Danbury  to  procure  one  for  me, 
and  received  the  following  reply,  dated 

Danbury,  CoNNEcricirr,  November  2g,  187^. 

C.  K.  Ross,  Esq. — Dear  Sir: — Your  letter  came  to  hand  last  night, 
the  woman  and  child  are  here.  I  have  examined  the  parties  pretty  well, 
and  took  them  to  an  artist  and  had  their  pictures  taken,  and  enclosed 
you  have  one  of  each.  Had  I  thought  for  a  moment  that  the  child  was 
your  dear  boy^  I  would  have  spared  no  expense  in  taking  them  into  cus- 
tody. I  am  not  positive  that  this  is  the  same  woman  and  child  that  were 
at  Bethel  and  Newtown,  but  think  they  are.  The  boy  is  large  for  his 
age,  and  dressed  in  girl's  clothes ;  he  is  smart  and  active ;  his  eyes  are 
decidedly  blue.  I  attended  to  the  matter  at  once,  as  I  know  just  how 
much  suspense  you  are  in  all  the  time  when  these^tories  reach  you  from 
all  parts  of  the  country.  Anything  I  can  do  to  assist  you  I  will  do  with 
pleasure.  Yours  truly, 

C.  H.  Crosby,  Policeman  of  Danbury. 

The  correspondence  which  ensued  in  this  case  was 
voluminous,  and  showed  the  intense  interest  the  people 
took  in  endeavoring  to  restore  our  little  boy.  One  in- 
stance only  can  be  given.  The  following  note  was  sent 
to  Captain  Heins,  dated 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         3/1 

Stratford,  Connecticut,  November  2^^  iBjS' 
Wm.  R,  Heins,  Esq. — Deay  Sir: — Have  you  a  picture  of  Charley 
Ross,  which  you  can  spare  ?     They  seem  to  think  he  is  about  here. 
Yours  truly,  L.  H.  Russell. 

I  replied  to  Mr.  Russell's  note,  sending  him  a  photo- 
graph and  asking  him  to  let  me  know  what  informa- 
tion they  had;  and  received  the  following  answer, 
which  is  so  expressive  of  kind  feelings  and  sympathies, 
that  I  take  pleasure  in  giving  it  publicity : 

Stratford,  Connecticut,  November  2<p,  187s. 

Christian  K.  Ross,  Esq. — Dear  Sir: — Yours  covering  photograph 
and  description  of  little  Charley,  also  yours  of  27th  inst.,  are  at  hand. 

We  have  some  children  in  our  family  of  whom  we  think  something, 
and  ever  since  the  abduction  of  little  Charley  our  sympathies  have 
gone  out  to  you  in  the  terrible  bereavement;  and  you  may  rest  assured 
that  if  there  is  anything  we  can  do  in  our  small  way  to  aid  you  in  the 
restoration  of  your  little  one  it  shall  be  most  cheerfully  done. 

The  woman  who  has  been  recently  arrested  in  Newtown,  and  allowed 
to  depart,  is,  undoubtedly,  the  same  one  who  passed  through  here  last 
summer  with  the  little  one,  and  who  asked  for  something  to  eat  at  our 
house.  The  child  played  l^p  and  down  on  the  piazza  and  seemed  happy, 
and  some  little  delicacies  were  given  it,  and  it  was  noticed  by  my  mother 
that  it  was  kept  veiled.  She  spoke  of  it  after  their  departure,  and  wished 
we  had  a  photograph  of  Charley  Ross,  so  that  we  might  know  how  he 
looked,  in  the  event  that  he  should  be  discovered  about  here.  The 
woman  does  not  live  here,  and  I  am  under  the  impression  she  comes 
from  some  town  on  the  coast  further  east.  As  she  is  itinerant  in  her 
habits,  I  don't  know  that  I  could  put  my  hands  on  her  just  now,  but  I 
will  make  inquiry  of  persons  whom  I  think  would  be  apt  to  know,  and 
report  any  developments. 

This  man  Bray,  who  followed  and  arrested  the  woman,  is  not  the  man 
to  let  her  go,  if  he  thought  he  had  the  slightest  reason  to  detain  her; 
hence  I  think  it  doubtful  if  the  child  be  the  missing  one.  However,  I 
will  try  to  get  a  photograph  of  the  child  for  you,  and  if  it  is  within  the 
range  of  possibilities  will  do  it. 

If  at  any  time  we  can  be  of  service  to  you,  do  not  hesitate  a  moment 
to  command  us.  Very  truly  yours,  L.  H.  Russell. 

Again  he  writes,  dated  December  ist,  1875  : 


372  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

Christian  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir : — The  woman  and  child  are  now 
at  the  New  Haven  Alms  House.  The  warden  says  the  child  was  bom 
in  Guilford,  Connecticut ;  is  about  six  years  old.  I  can  get  a  photo- 
graph of  him  if  you  wish.     Awaiting  your  commands, 

I  am  yours  truly,  L.  H.  KussELL. 

The  father  of  this  child  subsequently  traced  him  to 
the  alms-house  in  New  Haven,  and  made  application 
to  get  possession  of  him. 

Another  case  which  was  brought  to  our  notice,  is 
of  more  than  ordinary  interest,  because  the  child  has 
been  rescued  from  an  irresponsible  woman,  and  found 
a  home  with  kind  and  good  people  who  propose  to 
nurture  and  train  him  up  as  their  own  child.  In  Sep- 
tember, 187$,  I  received  the  following  letter  from  Ten- 
nessee : 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross,  Washington  Lane,  Germantown,  Pa. — ^The 
import  of  my  letter  is  one  of  sadness  to  us.  We  have  heard  or  rather 
seen  a  circular  in  regard  to  a  little  lost  boy,  by  name  Charley 
Brewster  Ross;  and  there  is  at  the  time  of  this  writing  with  us  a 
little  boy  answering  the  description  exactly,  except  vaccination.  This 
child  was  left  at  my  yard  gate  a  month  ago  by  a  suspicious-looking 
woman  who  professed  to  be  his  mother,  but  acted  very  unlike  a  mother. 
When  questioned  as  to  who  she  was  or  where  she  came  from,  she  gave 
very  unsatisfactory  answers.  Afterwards  she  walked  oflf  and  left  the 
child.  I  took  him  in  my  house  and  supplied  the  place  of  a  mother  the 
best  I  could.  Although  he  has  been  with  us  so  short  a  time,  we  are  very 
much  attached  to  him,  and  will,  under  no  consideration,  give  him  up 
unless  he  can  be  identified  by  his  parents.  The  reward  has  induced 
many  to  search  for  your  child ;  but  the  reward  did  not  prompt  me  to 
take  this  child,  for  at  that  time  I  had  not  heard  of  the  long-lost  Char- 
ley Ross.  Yesterday  I  saw  the  picture  and  circular  of  your  child  in 
the  hands  of  the  sheriff  of  our  county.  Had  I  known  of  the  loss  of  your 
child  I  would  have  written  you  immediately.  This  child  has  accom- 
panied me  everywhere  I  went  since  he  has  been  with  me ;  and  I  am 
leady  to  make  further  explanations  when  I  hear  from  you.  Being  in 
very  needy  circumstances,  I  cannot  telegraph  to  you  or  send  a  picture; 
but  should  you  desire  a  picture,  if  you  will  forward  the  money  I  will 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         373 

send  a  full-sized  photograph  as  soon  as  one  can  be  taken.  To  speak 
truthfully,  I  do  not  want  to  give  the  child  up;  but  if  he  proves  to  be  the 
lost  Charley,  I  would  be  glad  to  see  him  restored  to  his  grief-stricken 
parents.  I  am  poor,  and  of  course  the  money  would  alleviate  my  cir- 
cumstances very  much ;  but  money  could  not  take  him  if  he  is  not  .the 
lost  child.     As  I  deem  this  sufficient  at  this  time,  I  will  close. 

Yours  truly,  Mrs. . 

To  this  letter  I  replied,  asking  for  further  informa- 
tion, and  that  a  picture  be  sent  me  as  soon  as  it  could 
be  taken.  The  next  letter  I  received  was  as  follows, 
dated  Tennessee,  October,  1875: 

Mr.  C,  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir  : — In  reply  to  your  letter  of  the  8th  inst. 
I  would  say  that  I  had  started  to  have  a  photograph  taken  when  your 
letter  reached  me.  But  the  sheriff  has  taken  the  advantage  of  me,  and 
doubtless  forwarded  you  a  picture  with  a  letter  and  probably  a  news- 
paper publication,  which  I  am  and  was  opposed  to  his  doing.  It  was 
my  intention  when  I  wrote  to  you  to  fully  investigate  the  matter,  and  if 
the  child  in  my  hands  was  yours,  to  restore  him  to  the  aggrieved  parents. 
It  was  not  money  that  induced  me  to  write  ;  but  the  excitement  which 
has  been  raised  from  the  report  that  our  little  boy  John  Wilkins,  as  we 
call  him,  is  Charley  Ross,  has  grown  to  a  considerable  pitch,  so  much 
so  that  I  am  almost  afraid  some  one  will  attempt  to  take  him  from  me. 
But  the  man  who  comes  to  take  him  by  force  must  be  doubly  protected, 
for  the  child  is  very  near  and  dear  to  me.  No  one  but  the  parent  can 
get  him;  the  public  is  excited  on  the  subject.  That  he  is  CHARLEY 
Ross  I  am  not,  in  the  least,  inclined  to  believe.  I  had  the  picture 
taken ;  the  woman  who  left  the  child  is  an  American,  tolerably  good- 
looking  and  seemingly  tolerably  well-bred;  has  hazel  eyes  and  black 
hair,  and  says  she  lived  in  an  adjoining  county.  She  says  her  name  is 
Susan.  As  to  her  whereabouts  I  know  not.  She  came  here  on  the  2d 
of  this  month,  and  said  she  heard  the  child  had  been  taken  from  me ; 
but  she  left  me  as  much  in  the  dark  as  ever,  not  telling  me  where  she 
lived  or  giving  her  name.  I  give  this  much  information  lest  your  hopes 
may  be  excited  only  to  be  blighted,  for  I  do  not  think  our  little  boy  is 
your  long-lost,  much-loved  Charley;  although  there  may  be  some 
resemblance,  I  am  not  at  all  inclined  to  think  so,  although  many  will 
have  it  that  way;  that  is  too  often  the  case  when  we  really  wish  to 
believe  it.  It  is  easy  to  persuade  oneself  to  believe  anything.  This 
child  is  certainly  a  very  bright  boy;  he  does  not  talk  plainly;  has  dark 


374  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

eyes  and  flaxen  hair,  and  may  prove  to  be  your  Charley;  but  I  will  not 
believe  it  until  it  is  proven.  I  am  the  one  interested,  and  wish  to  keep 
him,  and  would  rather  not  have  so  much  excitement  if  it  could  be 
avoided.     Enclosed  you  will  find  a  picture  of  little  John  Wilkins. 

With  my  best  wishes  to  you  and  with  the  hope  that  you  may  find  your 
treasure,  1  close.  Yours  most  respectfully,  Mrs. . 

On  receipt  of  the  picture  I  wrote  the  lady  that  the 
child  was  a  bright-looking  little  fellow,  but  not  our 
Charley;  but  I  was  glad  to  know  he  was  now  in 
charge  of  those  who  were  interested  in  him  and  whose 
purposes  were  to  take  good  care  of  him ;  and  received 
the  following  reply  to  my  letter : 

Tennessee,  November  ij,  1874, 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — I  hasten  to  reply  to  yours  of  27th  ult., 
and  readily  give  my  consent  that  you  can  keep  the  picture  I  sent  you.  I  am 
glad  that  you  wish  to  keep  it ;  my  sympathy  is  so  great  for  this  little  waif, 
I  think  every  one  else  ought  to  feel  as  I  do.  You  speak  of  his  being  a 
very  bright  little  fellow  j  he  certainly  is  an  extraordinary  child,  having 
the  best  disposition  of  any  child  I  ever  saw.  He  has  no  doubt  been 
trained  and  nurtured  by  doating  parents.  It  is  not  possible  the  woman 
who  left  him  with  me  taught  him  what  he  knows ;  he  can  tell  three  let- 
ters of  the  alphabet,  says  he  learned  them  on  plank  fences.  He  says  he 
has  seen  steam  cars,  but  does  not  know  how  far  from  here ;  says  he  slept 
in  the  woods.  He  has  a  beautiful  skin  and  hair,  very  sweet  manners  and 
neat  habits;  and,  really,  I  think  him  a  little  jewel.  I  am  determined  to 
do  the  best  I  can  for  him ;  my  only  fear  is  that  I  may  not  be  able  to 
educate  him  as  well  as  I  could  wish,  but  no  opportunity  will  be  neglected 
so  long  as  I  live.  If  ever  your  little  lOved  Charley  is  restored,  show 
him  the  picture  and  tell  him  that  it  is  the  picture  of  a  poor  little  boy  who 
had  neither  home  nor  friends.  I  would  be  exceedingly  glad  to  hear 
from  you  if  your  little  Charley  is  restored  to  you,  for  no  one  would  re- 
joice more  with  you  than  myself.  Thanks  for  the  compliment  in  regard 
to  the  kindness  extended  to  the  poor  little  waif  committed  by  chance  to 
my  care. 

I  close  by  saying  that  I  am  too  glad  to  be  able  to  keep  little  John 
Wilkins  with  me,  but  sorry  I  could  not  relieve  the  long-burthened  hearts 
of  little  Charley's  parents. 

I  am  yours  respectfully,  Mrs.  — ^ 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         375 

The  excitement  in  the  neighborhood  where  this  child 
was  discovered  was  very  great;  persons  went  many 
miles  to  see  him,  when  it  became  known  that  he  was 
supposed  to  be  the  missing  child,  thus  showing  the  in- 
terest which  is  felt  for  the  recovery  of  the  kidnapped 
child  in  that  far  distant  State. 

The  case  of  a  child  found  in  the  Province  of  Nova 
Scotia,  British  Possessions,  claimed  to  be  Charley 
Ross,  will  now  be  given.  Early  in  March,  1875,  I  re- 
ceived the  following  letter,  dated 

Aylesford,  Nova  Scotia,  February  2ph,  i8yS' 

Mr.  Ross. — My  Dear  Sir  : — With  regard  to  your  lost  child,  there  is 
a  small  boy  in  this  county  with  a  woman  who  pretends  to  tell  fortunes. 
The  child  is  about  four  and  a  half  years  old,  very  bright,  and  says  his 
name  is  Charley  Ross.  They  came  from  the  United  States  in  August 
or  first  of  last  September.  I  have  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  child 
is  your  son.  Now  can  you  give  me  any  information  about  the  boy,  and 
give  me  authority,  and  I  will  find  out  all  about  him,  and  advise  you  as 
soon  as  I  hear  from  you.     I  have  the  honor  to  be  your  friend 

David  Corbin. 

To  this  letter  I  replied,  and  sent  the  writer  a  full 
description  of  Charley,  with  a  photograph,  and  asked 
him  to  note  very  particularly  the  color  of  the  child's 
eyes.  I  also  gave  him  a  number  of  questions  to  ask 
the  child,  with  a  request  that  as  soon  as  he  was  able 
he  should  write  me  everything  connected  with  the  case 
that  he  found  out.     His  next  letter  is  dated— 

Aylesford,  Nova  Scotia,  March  12, 187J. 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — Since  I  last  wrote  you  about  the  boy 
I  Charley  Ross,  I  called  personally  and  made  an  investigation,  and  the 
following  is  a  correct  statement  of  what  I  learned 

The  boy  is  perfect  in  every  respect,  of  a  medium  height,  has  well- 
formed  eyes,  color  between  hazel  and  blue,  hair  somewhat  dark.  The 
woman  who  has  him  says  that  his  hair  became  darker  since  last 
summer,  and  his  eyes  lighter.     The  child   has  a  full,  round  fat  face, 


376  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

short  chin  with  a  noticeable  dimple,  a  plump  dimpled  hand  and  a  slight 
cowlick  on  the  left  side  of  his  forehead,  with  the  hair  pointing  upward, 
and  inclined  towards  the  left  ear,  and  does  not  resemble  the  likeness 
you  sent  me  in  some  respects.  The  people  who  have  the  child  came 
here  from  the  United  States,  first  stopping  in  New  Brunswick.  I  have 
been  secretly  watching  their  movements  for  three  months,  and  the  sup- 
posed mother  intends  bringing  the  child  to  my  house  for  a  fortnight,  and 
will  then  look  for  the  mark  on  his  arm.  I  clipped  a  little  lock  of  his 
hair,  which  is  inclosed. 

I  will  spare  no  pains,  and  with  the  blessing  of  God  will  do  all  I  can, 
and  forward  information  and  particulars  as  fast  as  I  can  obtain  them. 
Yours  very  truly,  David  Corbin. 

Again  on  the  23d  of  March  he  writes: 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — Your  letter  of  17th  inst.  just  received. 
The  boy  was  brought  to  my  house  yesterday.  I  had  a  photographer  on 
hand  and  got  a  poor  picture  of  the  child,  which  I  inclose -to  you.  I  will 
get  a  better  picture  in  a  day  or  two.  The  boy  is  smart,  talks  plainly, 
has  a  small  neck  and  very  light  ej'ebrows.  He  tells  my  children  that 
Charley  Ross's  father  is  coming  after  him  in  the  spring.  I  will  take 
advantage  of  every  opportunity  to  find  out  all  I  can  by  Saturday's  mail, 
and  will  then  send  you  another  likeness.  I  have  to  act  quietly,  but 
know  how  to  do  it.  Please  let  me  know  your  impressions  after  receiv- 
ing this. 

I  forgot  to  mention  that  when  the  child  was  first  brought  to  Nova 
Scotia  his  hair  was  long  and  curly,  and  much  lighter  in  color  than  at 
present.  Yours  truly,  David  Corbin. 

To  this  letter  I  replied  that  the  child  at  Aylesford 
was  not  my  little  boy,  as  the  picture  which  I  received 
did  not  bear  the  slightest  resemblance  to  him ;  but  be- 
fore my  letter  reached  Mr.  Corbin,  he  wrote  again  as 
follows,  dated 

March  ji,  iSyj. 
Mr.  C  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — I  have  no  doubt  of  this  child  being 
yours;  the  woman  who  has  him  told  me  there  is  a  great  sum  of  money 
on  his  head,  and  she  or  some  one  else  will  get  it  before  long;  but  she 
says  it  is  only  the  boy's  face  that  will  get  it.  I  have  him  here  with  me, 
and  when  I  talk  to  him  about  home  he  puts  his  arm  over  his  face  and 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  3/7 

will  not  answer.  I  asked  him  if  he  would  like  to  see  his  father;  he 
said  he  would.  He  told  my  daughter  he  had  cousins  whose  names 
were  Joe,  George  and  Frank,  but  would  not  tell  the  names  of  any  of  his 
brothers.  I  have  traced  these  people  back  as  far  as  Portland,  Maine, 
thence  to  Eastport,  St.  John's,  New  Brunswick.  I  am  fearful  lest  the 
boy  may  be  taken  away,  and  should  like  to  know  your  decision  ere  long. 
Yours  truly,  David  Corbin. 

P.  S. — The  child  is  drilled  so  as  to  forget  all  about  home.  I  do  wish 
you  could  see  him  face  to  face.  D.  C. 

On  receiving  my  letter  in  which  I  state  our  decision 
that  the  child  is  not  our  Charley,  Mr.  Corbin  writes  as 
follows : 

Aylesford,  Nova  Scotia,  April  ph,  iSys- 
Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — I  received  yours  of  a  late  date,  in  which 
you  say  that  the  child's  eyes  are  too  light  for  your  son,  etc.  Every  day 
throws  more  light  on  the  subject,  and  the  more  the  boy  is  with  me  the 
stronger  is  my  belief  that  he  is  your  boy.  I  have  called  in  a  physician, 
and  he  says  that  if  there  ever  was  a  Charley  Ross  stolen,  that  this  child 
is  he ;  he  says,  if  a  child  should  be  taken  from  a  city,  and  let  run  at 
large  in  the  country  for  nine  months,  his  own  mother  would  not  know 
him;  and  with  regard  to  the  color  of  the  eyes,  that  don't  amount  to  any- 
thing, for  he  has  known  children's  eyes  to  change  from  a  dark  hazel  to 
a  light  blue  inside  of  one  year.  He  furthermore  says  that  the  photo- 
graph you  sent  me  is  an  exact  likeness  of  the  boy  when  he  stands  with 
his  mouth  a  little  open;  but  a  full  face  view  it  does  not  look  so  much 
like  him.  The  woman  who  has  the  child  is  becoming  uneasy,  and  talks 
of  going  back  to  the  States  in  May,  and  says  she  will  get  a  large  sum  of 
money  then.  I  heard  her  say  to  the  boy,  when  alone  with  him,  that  she 
would  leave  him,  "and  then  Ross  can  get  you,  I've  had  you  long  enough." 
If  this  don't  prove  to  be  your  boy  I  will  not  charge  you  one  cent,  only 
good  will.  I  have  the  honor  to  be  yours  truly, 

David  Corbin. 

Before  the  above  letter  reached  me  the  second  pho- 
tograph was  sent  me  through  the  Pinkerton  agency, 
who  had  also  heard  of  this  child.  After  submitting  it 
to  my  family  for  inspection,  I  wrote  Mr.  Corbin  conclu- 
sively that  we  all  decided  the  child  was  not  our  missing 


378  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

boy,  and  supposed  the  matter  was  ended;  but  subse- 
quently the  mayor  received  a  letter  repeating  what  had 
been  written  me,  and  insisting  that  some  one  should  be 
be  sent  to  Aylesford  who  would  know  Charley  Ross, 
as  the  writer  was  fully  satisfied  that  he  had  possession 
of  him. 

The  child  certainly  was  not  ours,  and  had  evidently 
been  schooled  by  the  woman  who  had  charge  of  him 
to  call  himself  Charley  Ross,  and  to  answer  a  few 
questions  correctly,  learned  from  circulars,  with  the 
expectation  of  getting  something  from  the  persons  who 
might  become  interested  in  him. 

Although  popular  excitement  in  the  case  has  very 
very  much  subsided,  because  of  the  length  of  time 
which  has  elapsed  since  the  abduction,  yet  scarcely  a 
week  passes  without  our  receiving  reports  of  children 
in  different  sections  of  the  country  who  are  supposed 
to  be  our  missing  boy,  and  which  require  investigation. 
A  very  recent  case  was  brought  to  our  notice,  which, 
from  the  far-distant  territory  in  which  the  child  was 
found,  and  the  persistent  efforts  of  the  gentlemen  who 
followed  the  woman  having  him  in  charge,  deserve 
more  than  a  passing  notice. 

On  the  8th  of  April,  1876,  I  received  the  following 
telegram,  dated 

McAllister,  Indian  Territory. 

What  is  the  full  amount  of  reward  offered  for  Charley  ?    Answer. 
Signed,  . 

On  inquiry  at  the  office  of  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company  I  learned  that  McAllister  was  a  village 
of  the  Choctaw  Nation,  Indian  Territory,  about  twenty- 
five  hundred  miles  distant  from  this  city;  yet  the  man- 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         3/9 

ager  kindly  made  up  a  circuit  and  put  me  in  direct 
communication  with  the  place.  My  answer  to  the 
telegram  was  "Five  thousand  dollars."  They  replied, 
"We  think  we  have  Charley  here;  come  quickly. 
Answer."  This  dispatch  was  received  late  Saturday 
night.  The  next  day,  Sunday,  a  conversation  was 
held,  which  resulted  in  learning  that  the  child  had  dark 
blue  eyes,  answered  the  description  of  Charley  Ross 
in  every  respect,  called  himself  Charley  Ross,  al- 
though he  had  another  name;  he  had  been  used  very 
hard,  having  travelled  three  hundred  miles  on  the 
same  horse  with  the  woman  who  had  charge  of  him. 
I  replied  that  if  they  were  sure  his  eyes  were  blue,  he 
was  not  my  child,  and  requested  them  to  send  me  a 
picture  of  him.  The  next  day  I  received  a  telegram, 
saying  that  his  eyes  were  dark  gray.  I  now  requested 
that  a  woman  who  could  distinguish  colors  be  called 
into  the  office,  to  look  at  his  eyes.  She  decided  they 
were  brown  gray,  or  dark  gray.  Being  as  uncertain 
now  as  before,  I  asked  the  child  several  simple  ques- 
tions, to  none  of  which  did  he  give  correct  answers. 
I  then  received  a  message  saying  that  there  was  no 
artist  in  the  place  to  take  a  picture,  and  telegraphed 
back  that  I  did  not  think  he  was  Charley,  and  did  not 
feel  warranted  in  taking  so  long  a  trip  without  more 
definite  information.  They  stated  that  the  woman  and 
child  were  under  arrest,  and  would  be  held  until  a  let- 
ter reached  me,  to  which  I  should  reply  by  telegraph. 
The  letter  is  as  follows  : 

McAllister,  Choctaw  Nation,  I.  T.,  April  8, 1876. 
Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir  : — We  have  now  in  charge  a  very  shrewd 
woman  who  has  been  travelling  from  place  to  place,  and  has  with  her  a 
boy,  apparently  five  years  old.     Sometimes  he  is  dressed  as  a  boy,  at 


380  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

other  times  as  a  girl.  We  have  seen  your  description  of  Charley,  and 
feel  very  confident  we  have  him.  We  thought  there  was  a  large  reward 
offered,  and  have  put  ourselves  to  great  trouble  to  secure  him  and  his 
keeper.  There  is  a  man  in  company  who  has  lately  joined  them. 
Charley  has  the  cowlick  and  the  vaccinnaiion  mark  on  his  arm.  He 
was  asked  this  morning  what  was  his  name  ?  He  said,  Hiram.  **  What 
other  name  have  you  ?"  He  replied  "Charley  Ross."  We  are  here 
in  a  strange  place,  and  have  the  woman  and  man  both  to  guard.  If 
you  wish  to  satisfy  yourself,  come  quickly;  come  prepared  to  fix  all  up, 
as  we  are  very  confident  we  have  him  here. 
We  are  yours  truly, 
Signed,  —— ^— . 

Expecting  a  letter  of  a  later  date  I  did  not  reply  to 
the  above,  and  the  next  day  received  the  following, 
dated  McAllister,  I.  T.: 

April  TO,  1876. 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir: — ^Aftcr  the  conversation  through  the 
wires  we  have  just  had  with  you,  I  now  write  more  minutely.  My 
comrade  wrote  last  Saturday.  I  brought  the  little  boy  here  to-day  to 
have  his  likeness;  but  there  is  no  artist  here.  I  will  say  to  you  I  verily 
believe  the  child  we  have  is  Charley  Ross.  A  woman  came  to  my 
native  town  in  Texas,  1st  of  January  last,  and  pretended  to  be  hunting  a 
school ;  but  failing  in  that  she  went  about  twelve  miles  west,  where  I 
saw  this  boy.  He  had  long,  flaxen  curly  hair,  which  hung  nearly  to  his 
shoulders  in  ringlets. 

About  a  month  ago  a  picture  of  Charley  cair.e  into  my  possession, 
and  in  an  instant  I  recognized  the  resemblance.  I  also  sent  the  picture 
to  a  very  intelligent  lady  who  had  seen  the  child  here,  and  she  also 
remarked  it  was  the  likeness  of  the  child  here,  without  any  person  call- 
ing her  attention  to  it.  The  woman  with  whom  the  boy  is,  is  very  bad, 
although  intelligent.  She  claims  to  have  l3,ooo  in  a  bank  in  Louisiana. 
About  three  weeks  ago  she  shot  a  man  in  the  head,  was  arrested,  but 
escaped.  We  have  pursued  her  hundreds  of  miles  on  horseback,  and 
are  pretty  well  worn  out,  as  you  may  judge,  and  have  spent  considerable 
money.  We  have  frequently  seen  that  there  was  ^20,000  or  more 
reward  offered  for  the  child. 

I  verily  believe  if  you  allow  this  opportunity  to  recover  your  son  to 
pass,  you  will  never  have  another  of  getting  him. 

When  I  asked  his  name  he  said  Charley  Ross  ;  and  I  well  know 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED    UP.  38 1 

Sie  name  of  Ross  had  not  been  mentioned  to  him.  His  recollection  of 
two  years  ago  is  very  faint,  and  he  has  had  rough  treatment.  He  was 
carried  by  the  woman  250  miles  on  horseback,  in  cold  bad  weather, 
camping  out  with  nothing  but  the  saddle  blankets  of  the  horse  to  cover 
them.  We  know  not  what  to  do.  Are  a  great  distance  fiom  home  and 
have  no  money  to  spend  without  a  fair  prospect  of  its  being  returned. 
True  it  is  in  expectation  of  a  large  reward  that  we  undertook  the  jour- 
ney. 

Some  persons  say  the  child's  eyes  are  hazel,  others  dark  gray ;  but  we 
think  the  color  of  the  eyes  does  not  make  any  difference.  Every  person 
says  he  is  the  Charley  Ross.  I  expect  we  shall  start  for  home  in  the 
morning.  My  address  is  Texas.  If  you  come  on,  come  to  Texas  to 
my  address.  Signed, . 

To  this  letter  I  replied  as  follows,  dated  Philadelphia, 
April  15,  1876: 

Messrs. . —  Gentlemen  : — Your  favor  of  the  8th  inst.  is  to  hand, 

and  also  the  letter  of  a  few  days  earlier  date. 

In  reply  I  would  say  1  am  sorry  you  have  been  unable  to  get  a  picture 
of  the  child  you  suppose  to  be  my  little  son.  You  will  understand  why 
I  am  so  skeptical  about  any  stranger  being  able  from  a  woodcut  to  iden- 
tify the  child,  when  I  tell  you  that  I  have  already  in  different  ways 
traced  up  about  three  hundred  children,  and  in  most  of  these  cases  per- 
sons who  reported  them  were  well  assured  they  were  right ;  but  of  course 
they  were  mistaken. 

I  am  satisfied  that  my  little  boy's  eyes  are  a  decided  brown,  as  are  the 
eyes  of  all  my  children,  and  as  they  grow  older  they  become  y  darker  in 
color.  And  oculists,  of  whom  I  have  inquired,  say  there  is  no  way  by 
which  the  iris  can  be  changed  in  color. 

Again,  I  cannot  see  what  connection  there  could  possibly  be  between 
this  woman  and  the  people  who  actually  stole  my  little  boy.  We  know 
these  persons  were  killed  December  14,  1874;  and  how  a  woman  who 
you  say  has  been  wandering  about  the  Southern  country  should  have  had 
any  acquaintance  with  a  couple  of  river  thieves  who  belonged  to  New 
York  I  cannot  see,  yet  it  might  be — but  it  is  almost  impossible. 

It  is  not  an  unusual  thing  for  children  to  call  themselves  CHARLEY 
Ross.  I  have  a  number  of  instances  of  the  kind,  and  have  found  several 
children  who  answered  some  questions  correctly,  which  seemed  almost 
incredible :  yet  they  were  not  mine. 


382  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

I  confess  I  do  not  feel  warranted  in  incuning  the  expense  of  going 
South  to  look  after  this  child  without  more  definite  information. 

My  means  have  been  exhausted  long  since ;  everything  has  been  fully 
investigated ;  but  if  I  felt  that  there  was  a  possible  chance  that  he  was 
my  little  boy  I  should  make  any  sacrifice  to  see  him.  I  inclose  a  cir- 
cular with  photograph,  and  thanking  you  for  the  interest  you  have  taken 
in  the  matter,  I  am  respectfully  yours, 

Christian  K.  Ross. 

On  the  13th  of  April  the  following  letter  was  written 

at 

Stonewall,  Chickasaw  Nation. 
Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Sir: — ^We  have  just  arrived  here,  eighty  miles 
from  McAllister,  on  our  way  to  Sherman.  We  are  going  theie  to  be  in 
more  direct  communication  with  you.  We  are  now  thoroughly  convinced 
we  have  Charley  Brewster  Ross.  While  on  our  way  here  the 
woman  has  told  us  the  whole" story.  She  says  the  child  is  not  hers; 
but  he  was  placed  in  her  hands  about  one  year  ago,  with  the  understand- 
ing that  the  three  men  who  gave  her  the  child  would  place  in  a  bank  in 
Louisiana  $3,000,  subject  to  her  order ;  there  was  present  at  the  time 
the  bargain  was  made  three  other  persons  (names  given) ;  that  this  boy 
is  Charley  Ross.  We  will  send  you  a  picture  of  both  the  woman  and 
child  as  soon  as  we  can  get  them  taken  in  Sherman.  But  we  are  satis- 
fied that  nothing  more  than  a  general  outline  of  him  will  resemble 
Charley,  for  the  reason  that  he  has  been  greatly  exposed  in  sun,  rain 
and  wind,  having  made  a  long  trip,  until  we  found  him  bareheaded  and 
barefooted.  His  face  is  scarred — the  woman  says  he  fell  on  hot  ashes ; 
and  his  hair  cut  very  badly.  His  face  looks  as  though  it  had  not  been 
washed  for  a  week.  We  are  taking  all  the  care  of  him  we  possibly  can  in 
this  savage  country.  We  do  think  the  facts  already  given  you  justify  your 
coming  at  once  to  Sherman  to  see  this  boy,  and  bring  your  wife  with 
you ;  for  we  think  you  may  have  difficulty  in  recognizing  your  own  child. 
We  know  if  you  was  as  well  satisfied  as  we  are  that  this  is  Charley, 
you  would  not  delay  a  moment  in  coming.  It  will  only  cost  you 
one  or  two  hundred  dollars  and  six  or  seven  days  time  to  come  to  Sher- 
man, and  we  have  spent  over  that  largely,  besides  being  subject  to  many 
privations,  dangers,  hunger,  etc.,  to  say  nothing  of  the  horses  we  have 
rode  down.  We  are  now  feeding  for  the  first  time  in  tliirty-six  hours, 
having  travelled  that  long  time  without  seeing  a  house.  We  were  afraid 
to  travel  on  the  railroad  for  fear  of  a  mob.  If  you  write,  jfost  to  Sher- 
man, Texas,  where  we  will  remain  until  this  thing  is  terminated.     But 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  383 

we  do  hope  you  will  not  delay  one  moment  in  coming.     Hoping  to  hear 
from  you  soon,  we  are  very  respectfully, 

Yours,  . 

In  this  letter  the  writer  refers  to  two  members  of 
Congress  from  Texas,  and  a  merchant  in  Sherman, 
Texas.  On  the  25  th  of  April,  I  received  another  letter 
enclosing  the  pictures  of  both  the  woman  and  child,  and 
telegraphed  immediately  to  Sherman  that  the  boy  was 
not  my  Charley.  The  picture  of  this  child  who  was 
followed  for  so  long  a  distance,  and  who  evidently  was 
in  charge  of  a  woman  not  his  mother  or  proper  guar- 
dian, and  about  whom  such  strong  assertions  were 
made  that  he  was  my  little  boy,  is  here  given.  I  also 
wrote  to  the  gentlemen  on  the  25th  of  April  as  follows: 

Gentlemen. — I  telegraphed  you  to-day  that  the  child  you  have  so 
persistently  followed,  and  whose  picture  I  received,  is  not  my  little  boy. 
I  also  received  your  favor  of  April  13th,  and  delayed  writing  until  the 
photograph  came  to  hand.  I  have  already  found  so  many  persons  mis- 
taken in  identity  that  I  am  ready  to  believe  there  is  scarcely  one  chance 
out  of  a  thousand  that  any  stranger  would  be  able  from  a  picture  to  iden- 
tify the  child ;  and  were  I  to  undertake  to  go  or  send  to  examine  one- 
fourth  of  the  children  who  are  reported  to  me  in  bad  hands  or  astray,  I 
should  require  a  strong  bank  upon  which  to  draw  for  funds,  and  then 
would  be  kept  on  the  go  all  the  time.  I  am  therefore  compelled  to  try 
first  to  get  all  the  facts  I  can,  and  then  decide  what  is  best  to  be  done. 
To-day  I  have  a  child  reported  in  Kansas  as  mine  certainly,  and  a  few 
days  ago  another  one  in  Texas  ;  a  day  or  two  ago  one  in  New  York,  and 
a  short  time  since  one  in  Germany ;  thus  you  can  see  the  great  difficulty 
I  would  have  to  respond  in  person  to  all. 

I  trust  that  some  one  will  yet  be  right,  and  thus  end  this  long  and  har- 
rowing suspense.     "With  many  thanks, 

I  am  yours  truly.  Christian  K.  Ross. 

I  will  here  relate  a  pleasant  incident  showing  the  tact 
used  by  two  ladies,  (who  thought  they  had  Charley,)  to 
6nd  out  whether  their  suspicions  were  right.  Last 
spring  a  man  with  a  child,  professing  to  be  from  New 


384  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

York,  arrived  in  this  city  and  stopped  at  a  private  board- 
ing-house. After  remaining  a  few  days,  he  said  he  was 
called  unexpectedly  to  New  York,  and  asked  the  privi- 
lege of  leaving  his  little  boy  until  he  returned,  which 
would  be  within  two  days.  Not  coming  back  at  the 
specified  time,  the  persons  in  the  house  suspected  he 
had  left  the  child  with  the  intention  of  abandoning  him, 
and  thought  he  resembled  the  pictures  which  they  had 
seen  of  Charley  Ross.  The  circumstance  was  reported 
to  me,  and  a  member  of  the  family  went  to  see  the  child, 
who  decided  that  he  was  not  our  little  boy.  The  child 
remained  with  the  family  about  a  month,  and  was  then 
placed  in  one  of  the  homes  for  friendless  children,  the 
matron  being  informed  at  the  time  that  he  was  not  our 
little  boy.  After  he  had  been  in  the  Home  a  short  time 
two  ladies  visiting  the  institution,  observing  a  striking 
likeness  to  Charley's  photograph,  became  impressed 
with  the  idea  that  we  might  have  been  mistaken  in  his 
identity,  and  without  saying  where  they  intended  going, 
obtained  permission  to  take  the  child  out  of  the  insti- 
tution for  a  few  hours.  Taking  him  to  my  residence 
they  turned  him  loose  on  the  lawn,  keeping  themselves 
concealed  outside  the  place  in  such  a  position  as  to  ob- 
serve the  child's  movements. 

The  little  fellow,  as  though  familiar  with  the  place, 
went  directly  on  the  porch,  mounted  the  velocipede,  and 
went  whirling  around  with  all  the  rapidity  he  could  give 
it.  Very  soon  Walter,  who  was  near  by,  saw  the  boy, 
and  always  ready  for  a  good  time,  joined  the  strange 
child,  and  very  soon  they  were  as  familiar  as  though 
they  had  known  each  other  all  their  lives.  The  ladies 
who  were  watching  all  these  actions  were  highly  de- 


Child  Found  in  the  Choctaw  Nation. 


A   MYSTERY   NOT   CLEARED   UP.  385 

lighted,  and  began  to  think  and  feel  that  by  their  tact 
they  had  surely  discovered  the  real  Charley  Ross. 
My  wife  hearing  the  voices  of  children  on  the  lawn,  and 
knowing  Walter  had  been  alone,  looked  out  of  the  nur- 
sery window  to  see  who  was  with  him,  and  at  a  glance 
saw  the  child  about  the  size  of  Charley,  with  light  hair, 
curled  as  his  used  to  be.  The  impression  flashed  across 
her  mind  that  he  was  her  own  dear  little  boy,  and  for 
the  moment  she  was  completely  unnerved,  and  seemed 
rooted  to  the  spot  on  which  she  stood,  without  power  to 
move  a  single  muscle ;  but  on  looking  at  him  again  she 
discovered  her  mistake,  and  with  trembling  steps  went 
to  the  children,  and  asked  Walter  whose  little  boy  was 
with  him.  He  said  he  didn't  know,  he  came  to  him 
and  wanted  to  play,  and  they  were  having  a  nice  time. 
The  ladies  who  had  brought  the  child  now  appeared, 
and  said  they  adopted  the  plan  of  letting  the  child  go 
on  the  lawn  to  see  if  by  his  actions  he  would,  show  any 
knowledge  of  the  place;  and  they  confessed  they  were 
greatly  encouraged  to  believe  they  had  brought  home 
our  long  missing  little  boy,  after  seeing  the  seeming 
familiarity  of  the  child  with  everything  he  saw,  and  the 
readiness  with  which  Walter  joined  in  his  play.  They 
said  he  went  up  on  the  lawn  at  once,  found  the  veloci- 
pede on  the  porch,  and  without  hesitation  began  to 
make  it  go  until  Walter  came  to  him,  and  without  any 
restraint  they  both  played  with  different  things  until 
spoken  to  by  Walter's  mother.  The  ladies  took  the  child 
away,  after  being  told  that  he  was  not  our  Charley; 
feeling  satisfied,  however,  with  the  effort  they  had  made 
to  restore  a  darling  child  to  the  embrace  of  his  mother. 
Many  other  cases  of  interest  have  occurred  during 
17 


386 


CHARLEY    ROSS. 


this  protracted  search  for  our  httle  boy,  of  which  de- 
tailed accounts  cannot  be  given  without  encroaching 
too  much  on  the  prescribed  hmits  of  this  volume. 
Enough  have  already  been  given  to  show  the  interest 
which  has  been  awakened  to  restore  the  child,  and  which 
has  not  been  confined  to  the  boundaries  of  our  country. 
The  number  of  children  reported  to  us  who  have 
been  traced,  and  of  whom  we  have  a  record,  reaches 
nearly  three  hundred.  Many  others  have  been  looked 
up,  both  here  and  in  New  York,  of  whom  no  record 
was  made.  This  number  does  not  include  the  cases 
the  Pinkerton  agency  investigated,  of  which  I  have  no 
account.  As  a  matter  of  interest,  I  give  the  States  and 
countries  where  children  have  been  looked  after,  with 
the  number  in  each : 


Pennsylvania 49 

New  York 42 

New  Jersey 28 

Illinois 15 

Michigan 12 

Massachusetts 12 

Ohio II 

Indiana 10 

Iowa 10 

Connecticut 7 

Missouri 7 

Maryland 6 

Tennessee 6 

West  Virginia 4 

Virginia 3 

New  Hampshire 3 

Kansas , 3 

Kentucky 3 

District  of  Columbia 3 


Colorado .„.  .     2 

Wisconsin 2 

Vermont  2 

Oregon 2 

California 5 

Delaware 2 

Minnesota 2 

Texas 
Georgia 
North  Carolina 
Maine 
Florida 
Louisiana 
Indian  Territory 
Nova  Scotia 
Cuba 

Canada 10 

Scotland 
Germany 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         38/ 

It  will  be  seen  by  this  list  what  a  vast  extent  of  terri- 
tory it  has  been  necessary  to  cover  by  investigations, 
whenever  a  child  has  been  reported  who  was  thought 
to  be  Charley  Ross;  and  as  maybe  imagined  from  the 
letters  which  have  been  given  in  the  few  cases  that  are 
mentioned  in  detail,  the  correspondence  has  been  very 
great;  in  almost  every  case  many  letters  were  received 
and  answered  before  a  final  conclusion  could  be  reached.- 
After  all  the  means  afforded  by  the  telegraph  and  cor- 
respondence failed  to  satisfy  us,  a  member  of  the  family, 
often  accompanied  by  a  police  officer,  went  to  examine 
into  cases,  so  as  to  leave  nothing  .in  doubt  when  it  was 
possible  to  be  certain. 

Our  general  plan  of  investigating  the  case  of  any 
child  who  is  reported  to  us,  is  to  find  out  as  nearly  as 
we  can  his  age,  the  color  of  his  eyes,  the  circumstances 
in  which  he  may  be  found,  and  to  ask  the  child  himself, 
if  we  can  reach  him  by  telegraph,  a  few  questions  about 
things  connected  with  the  home  of  Charley,  which  we 
think  he  will  never  forget.  If  there  remains  any  doubt 
after  these  questions  have  been  asked,  we  then  try  to 
get  a  picture  of  the  child,  or  send  personally  to  see  him. 
The  question  has  frequently  been  asked,  whether  out  of 
the  large  number  of  children  which  have  been  looked 
up  during  this  search  we  have  found  any  who  have  been 
really  kidnapped  ?  We  have  not  found  any  who  have 
been  taken  and  held  for  a  ransom,  and  but  two  instan- 
ces in  which  children  have  been  stolen.  Of  these  one 
was  the  boy  mentioned  in  a  previous  chapter,  as  taken 
from  his  home  by  two  strolling  vagabonds,  and  trained 
to  be  a  beggar,  and  restored  from  Chester,  Illinois,  to 
his  parents;  the  other  child  was  a  son  of  Professor 


388  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

Leib,  of  St.  Paul,  Minnesota,  who  was  stolen  about  four 
years  ago,  but  for  what  object  never  was  ascertained, 
as  nothing  has  ever  been  heard  of  him  since  he  was 
taken  away. 

The  children  we  have  traced,  and  whose  history  we 
could  find  out,  have  been  those  who  have  been  aban- 
doned by  their  parents.  Sometimes  the  father,  at  other 
times  the  mother,  would  leave  a  child  at  a  place  or 
house,  either  to  board  or  to  be  temporarily  cared  for, 
and  never  return  for  him.  Many  children  scattered 
over  the  country,  who  have  been  taken  out  of  different 
charitable  institutions  in  the  cities,  have  been  reported 
to  us  in  our  searches;  sometimes  by  the  persons  them- 
selves, who  have  come  into  possession  of  them,  at  other 
times  by  their  neighbors,  who  could  not  account  for  a 
strange  child  being  brought  among  them,  and  not  stop- 
ping to  inquire  into  the  matter,  concluded  that  he  might 
be  the  missing  boy.  Children  of  a  fair  complexion 
found  with  gipsies  and  other  wandering  people  we  are 
sure  to  hear  of  Illegitimate  children  who  have  been 
secreted  naturally  cause  conjecture ;  and  in  other  cases, 
where  there  has  been  disagreement  between  parents, 
either  one  of  whom  taking  away  a  little  boy  into  a 
strange  town,  the  efforts  made  to  conceal  the  child 
so  as  to  prevent  the  other  parent  finding  him,  would 
awaken  the  suspicion  of  some  one  who  would  report  it 
to  us.  Only  one  case  has  come  under  our  notice  of  a 
child  having  been  taken  through  personal  revenge,  and 
we  have  had  two  instances  in  which  children  have  been 
put  on  railroad  cars  by  inhuman  persons  to  be  cared  for 
by  conductors  of  the  trains.  We  have  also  had  a  few 
instances  reported  by  managers  of  charitable  institutions, 


A  MYSTERY  NOT  CLEARED  UP.         389 

when  they  have  thought  a  child  placed  in  the  institu- 
tion bore  a  resemblance  to  the  pictures  of  Charley,  and 
they  could  not  get  a  satisfactory  account  of  the  child's 
parentage.  Children  of  all  sizes,  and  of  ages  between 
two  years  and  twelve  years,  have  been  brought  to  our 
notice.  It  will  be  perceived  by  the  number  of  States 
and  countries  from  which  children  have  been  reported, 
either  as  astray  or  in  the  possession  of  persons  who 
rested  under  suspicion,  how  widely  our  loss  has  been 
advertised,  and  how  anxiously  kind-hearted  people  have 
hoped  that  in  the  face  of  a  neglected  child  they  had 
seen,  might  be  traced  the  features  of  little  Charley 
Ross. 

May  God  bless  all  such,  and  may  they  never  need 
our  sympathy  for  themselves  in  a  like  trial. 


CHAPTER   XIIi; 

TRIAL   OF  WESTERVELT.      THEORIES,  AND  CONCLUSION  OF 
NARRATIVE. 

iiO  enable  the  reader  of  this  narrative  more  thor- 
oughly to  understand  the  case  of  the  abduction 
of  my  son,  a  sketch  of  the  career  of  Mosher 
and  Douglas,  with  some  notice  of  their  crimes  and 
characteristics,  and  of  their  peculiar  kind  of  work,  is 
necessary.  The  first  of  these  men  combined  the  genius 
of  a  skilled  mechanic  with  the  qualities  of  a  daring  bur- 
glar. He  was  possessed  of  rare  ability  and  prudence 
in  originating  and  marking  out  his  schemes,  and  was 
not  wanting  in  consummate  boldness  in  their  execution. 
Born  in  Connecticut,  in  early  manhood  he  removed  to 
New  York,  where  for  a  time  he  pursued  the  occupation 
of  a  ship  carpenter.  Soon,  however,  he  drifted  into 
lawlessness  and  crime,  and  adopted  the  profession  of  a 
river  thief. 

He  drew  around  him  a  desperate  band  of  shore 
pirates  well  known  in  the  annals  of  crime  in  New  York, 
and  soon  became  their  leader.  In  1 857,  he  was  arrested 
and  charged  with  a  daring  robbery  on  the  East  river, 
but  was  discharged  because  the  captain  of  the  vessel 
was  so  seriously  injured  by  one  of  the  robbers  as  to  be 
unable  to  identify  any  of  them.  At  another  time  he 
was  tried  and  found  guilty  of  a  robbeiy,  and  imprisoned 
in  Sing  Sing,  but  was  released  before  the  expiration  ot 

his  sentence. 

(390) 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  39 1 

As  Mosher  grew  older,  he  gradually  abandoned  the 
dangerous  practice  of  robbing  vessels  along  the  river, 
and  adopted  a  less  hazardous  branch  of  crime,  and  be- 
came a  burglar  as  well  as  a  thief  For  years  he  suc- 
cessfully broke  into  houses  along  the  water  courses, 
which  he  approached  by  means  of  a  small  boat. 

After  this  manner  he  committed  many  depredations 
on  the  shores  of  Long  Island  and  New  Jersey,  loading 
his  booty  into  his  little  craft,  and  sailing  direct  for  the 
city  of  New  York,  where  the  stolen  property  was  placed 
beyond  the  reach  of  recovery.  If  pursued,  he  would 
run  into  some  one  of  the  many  places  of  concealment, 
all  well  known  to  him,  hide  the  goods,  and  await  an 
opportunity  to  carry  them  off  in  safety.  A  few  years 
ago  he  was  joined  in  his  nefarious  business  by  a  young 
man  named  Joseph  Douglas,  who,  although  much 
younger,  proved  to  be  a  suitable  companion  in  his  pred- 
atory excursions.  Between  these  two  men  there  grew 
a  close  intimacy,  and  they  seem  to  have  been  partners 
in  all  their  subsequent  crimes. 

It  was  during  one  of  these  piratical  expeditions  about 
four  years  ago,  they  robbed  a  country  store  in  Red 
Bank,  New  Jersey,  for  which  Mosher  was  arrested,  and 
under  the  name  of  Johnson  sent  to  Monmouth  county 
jail,  in  Freehold,  to  await  trial.  Thence  he  soon  made 
his  escape  so  successfully  that  all  trace  of  him  was  lost 
by  the  authorities.  At  this  time  he  came  to  Philadel- 
phia, and  assuming  the  names  of  Henderson  and  Hen- 
dricks, was  soon  joined  by  Douglas,  who,  taking  the 
name  of  Clark,  lived  with  him  until  the  kidnapping  of 
Charley.  While  in  this  city  they  followed  nominally 
the  business  of  peddling,  and  traveled  with  a  horse  and 


392  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

wagon  through  the  surrounding  country  selling  small 
articles,  often  extending  these  trips  into  the  State  of 
Delaware  and  as  far  south  as  Baltimore. 

While  they  remained  in  this  city  no  criminal  charges 
were  ever  brought  against  either  of  them,  nor  were  they 
known  to  our  police  as  criminals.  Whatever  depreda- 
tions they  committed  were  done  away  from  the  city  and 
the  stolen  property  brought  here  to  be  disposed  of. 

This  short  review  of  the  career  of  these  bad  men  is 
enough  to  show  that  for  long  years  they  were  familiar 
with  crime,  and  were  prepared  to  engage  in  anything 
that  promised  a  large  reward.  Finding  nothing  that  pro- 
mised that  result  more  surely  than  the  kidnapping  of  a 
little  child  and  holding  him  for  the  payment  of  a  large 
ransom,  they  became  pioneers  in  a  most  atrocious 
crime,  and  which  was  hitherto  unknown  in  this  country. 

The  plan  adopted  by  the  abductors  of  Charley 
showed  a  determined  purpose  from  the  outset  to  prove 
to  every  one,  that  whenever  in  the  future  they  stole  a 
child  they  would  never  give  him  up  without  a  large 
ransom,  which  should  be  paid  them  in  a  manner  en- 
tirely safe  to  themselves.  This  policy  obliged  them  to 
adopt  measures  of  more  than  ordinary  caution  for  their 
own  protection,  while  at  the  same  time  they  were  re- 
quired to  provide  means  by  which  they  would  secure 
the  money.  Thus  by  rigidly  holding  the  life  of  the 
child  as  the  price  of  their  own  security,  as  well  as  for 
the  payment  of  the  money,  they  demonstrated  that  they 
would  settle  such  affairs  in  their  own  way  and  on  their 
own  terms.  This  was  done  in  my  case,  not  only  to  in- 
timidate, but  also  to  show  to  other  parents  of  children 
that  might  afterwards  be  stolen  the  necessity  of  being 


TRIAL  OF  WESTERVELT.  393 

prompt  to  make  speedy  settlement  on  any  terms  dictated 
by  the  thieves,  and  at  the  same  time  to  keep  them  in  a 
condition  of  terror  until  a  settlement  should  be  made. 

This  inexorable  policy,  as  set  forth  by  the  writer  of 
the  letters,  shows  how  essential  it  was  that  but  few  per- 
sons should  be  taken  into  the  plot,  and  how  necessary 
that  those  few  should  be  bound  to  each  other  by  the 
Strongest  ties  and  inducements.  Hence  in  one  of  the 
letters  it  is  said  :  "  We  are  sworn  and  blood-bound  unto 
death  to  never  give  each  other  awayT  The  necessity  of 
the  case  in  the  judgment  of  Mosher  required  such  ex- 
ceeding secrecy  that  he,  the  chief  conspirator  in  the 
abduction,  by  whom  the  plot  was  conceived  and  under 
whose  direction  it  was  being  worked  out,  permitted 
himself  to  have  but  few  confidants.  He  had  long  been 
guilty  of  crime,  and  had  learned  by  experience  that  it 
would  be  fatal  to  that  secrecy  exacted  in  a  case  involving 
so  great  a  risk,  to  confide  in  more  than  were  positively 
needed  to  assist  in  carrying  out  his  plans. 

It  was  supposed  when  Mosher  and  Douglas  were 
first  suspected  of  being  the  kidnappers,  that  they  had 
accomplices ;  in  fact  in  one  of  the  letters  it  is  stated, 
"  There  are  four  of  us."  So  that  after  they  were  killed, 
it  became  necessary  to  change  the  plan  of  the  search 
for  the  child,  which,  while  they  lived,  consisted  chiefly 
in  efforts  to  secure  the  men  themselves,  and  thus  reach 
the  place  in  which  they  had  concealed  the  child.  After 
their  death  persons  with  whom  they  were  intimate  were 
looked  up,  in  the  expectation  that  possibly  through 
them  information  might  be  obtained  which  would  clear 
up  the  mystery.  As  stated  in  a  previous  chapter,  among 
the  first  of  these  persons  examined  was  William  Wes- 
17* 


394  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

tervelt,  brother  of  Mosher's  wife.  This  Westervelt  was 
known  to  be  an  associate  of  both  the  thieves,  and  early 
in  August,  1874,  was  suspected  of  being  concerned  in 
the  abduction.  The  New  York  authorities  faihng,  after 
a  search  of  about  two  weeks,  to  find  the  suspected 
criminals,  engaged  Westervelt  to  aid  in  accomplishing^ 
their  arrest;  but  after  their  death  it  was  very  strongly 
suspected  that  while  professing  to  help  the  police  he 
was  really  protecting  the  kidnappers,  and  by  his  dupli- 
city enabling  them  to  keep  out  of  the  way  of  the  detec- 
tives. The  statements  extracted  from  him,  together 
with  the  testimony  of  others  who  knew  he  was  in  com- 
munication with  Mosher  and  Douglas  while  in  the  em- 
ploy of  the  police  authorities,  satisfied  District  Attorney 
Furman  Sheppard,  of  this  city,  that  there  was  good  cause 
for  an  indictment  against  him;  and  a  true  bill  having 
been  found,  he  was  tried  in  September,  1875,  for  abduct- 
ing, detaining  and  concealing  Charles  Brewster  Ross, 
for  the  purpose  of  extorting  money  from  his  parents,  and 
for  conspiring  to  commit  these  acts.  The  bill  of  indict- 
ment contained  five  counts,  the  first  two  of  which  cov- 
ered the  abduction  and  concealment  of  the  child,  and 
the  last  three  the  element  of  conspiracy  to  abduct,  con- 
ceal, and  to  extort  money  by  threatening  letters. 

The  prisoner  was  defended  by  two  attorneys,  and  the 
case  for  the  Commonwealth  was  conducted  by  Furman 
Sheppard,  the  District  Attorney,  aided  by  Mr.  Henry  S. 
Hagert,  his  assistant, 

Mr.  Hagert,  in  his  opening  address  to  the  court, 
referred  to  the  crime  in  the  following  language :  "  In 
July,  1874,  the  citizens  of  Philadelphia  were  startled  at 
the  intelligence  that  an  atrocious  crime  had  been  com- 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  39$ 

mitted  in  their  midst,  one  which  to  the  criminal  annals 
of  the  city  prior  to  that  time  had  been  unknown.  The 
intelligence  of  that  crime  spread  far  and  wide  over  the 
country.  In  the  far  west,  in  the  east,  in  the  north,  and 
south ;  in  large  cities,  in  small  hamlets,  by  the  way- 
side, this  story  was  talked  of,  and  carried  with  it  sym- 
pathy and  regret.  The  community  was  aroused,  and 
every  man  and  woman  became,  as  it  were,  detectives. 
I  need  not  say  that  that  crime  was  the  abduction  of 
Charles  Brewster  Ross."  After  adverting  to  the 
fact  of  the  abduction,  and  to  the  testimony  by  which  it 
was  expected  to  connect  the  prisoner  with  the  crime, 
he  closed  his  remarks  as  follows :  "  There  were  more 
than  Mosher  and  Douglas  involved  in  this  business; 
there  were  men  who  took  care  of  the  boy,  who  moved 
him  from  place  to  place,  who,  when  messages  were  sent 
telling  them  of  approaching  danger,  changed  the  quar- 
ters and  location  of  the  boy.  You  will  understand 
there  were  a  number  of  things  to  be  considered  in  the 
abducting  of  the  boy.  He  had  to  be  hid,  and  kept  out 
of  the  reach  of  the  police  force.  You  will  understand 
how  great  was  the  search  for  this  boy,  how  all  the  po- 
lice force  of  the  country  was  interested  in  his  recovery; 
how  every  one  supposed  to  have  any  connection  with 
this  case  was  arrested  and  examined.  You  will  under- 
stand that  at  this  time,  when  the  interest  was  at  its 
highest,  that  man  in  the  dock  was  standing  by,  who 
could  put  his  hand  on  the  very  men  who  did  the  deed, 
having  them  in  his  own  house,  and  informing  them  of 
the  actions  of  the  police  and  of  the  intentions  of  the 
authorities.  If  we  can  show  you  that  these  facts  as 
stated  are  so,  there  can  be  no  doubt  he  is  just  as  guilty 


396  CHARLEY  ROSS. 

as  if  he  had  taken  the  boy  himself,  just  as  guilty  as  if 
he  had  conceived  the  plan  of  kidnapping.'* 

The  abduction  being  proven,  as  well  as  the  circum- 
stances connected  with  the  early  search  for  the  kidnap 
pers  and  the  child,  witnesses  were  examined  to  prove 
that  Mosher  and  Douglas  were  the  actual  abductors, 
and  to  show  how  Westervelt  was  connected  with  them 
as  an  accomplice.  The  main  facts  brought  out  during 
the  trial,  so  far  as  Westervelt  was  concerned  with  the 
case,  are  as  follows : 

In  January,  1874,  Westervelt  with  his  family  removed 
from  New  York  to  this  city,  and  lived  with  Mosher  for 
three  months  in  the  same  house,  returning  to  New  York 
in  April. 

On  the  23d  of  June,  one  week  before  the  abduction, 
he  made  Mosher  a  visit,  and  went  with  him  to  a  stable 
in  the  lower  part  of  the  city,  to  look  at  the  horse  and 
buggy,  used  afterwards  in  conveying  the  children  away. 
During  this  visit,  on  the  25th  of  June,  Mosher  wrote 
the  letter  addressed  to  Mrs.  Murdock  at  Rondout, 
dating  it  New  York,  June  26th,  and  entrusted  it  to 
Westervelt  to  carry  to  New  York,  where  he  posted  it 
on  his  arrival  in  that  city. 

On  the  1 8th  of  August  he  was  informed  by  the  police 
authorities  that  Mosher  and  Douglas  were  suspected 
of  being  the  kidnappers  of  Charley  Ross,  and  the  same 
day  informed  them  of  these  suspicions  and  that  the 
authorities  were  looking  for  them.  About  the  middle 
of  August,  by  request  of  Mosher  and  at  his'expense,  he 
came  to  Philadelphia,  ostensibly  to  help  his  sister  move 
to  New  York,  but  really  to  learn  whether  the  house  in 
which  Moshcr's  family  were   then    living  was    being 


TRIAL   OF   WESTER VELT.  39/ 

watched  by  the  poHce.  Before  leaving  New  York  he 
arranged  with  Mosher  to  put  the  following  personal  in 
a  newspaper  if  he  found  everything  right :  "  Napoleon 
I  have  seen  them  and  they  are  well."  If,  on  the  con- 
trary, the  house  was  being  watched,  it  was  to  be 
changed  to — "they  are  not  well,"  thus  indicating  to 
Mosher  whether  the  police  of  this  city  had  or  had  not 
found  out  the  residence  of  his  family. 

It  was  on  the  i8th  of  August  that  Superintendent 
Walling  had  the  first  interview  with  Westervelt,  and 
endeavored  to  engage  him  to  help  him  find  Mosher  and 
Douglas.  Declining  to  do  it  at  that  time,  several  days 
after  he  agreed  to  assist  him.  Before  the  second  inter- 
view with  the  Superintendent,  on  the  20th  of  August, 
his  sister,  Mrs.  Mosher,  with  her  family,  moved  to  New 
York  and  lived  with  Westervelt's  family  nearly  two 
months;  and  a  few  days  after  their  arrival  Mosher  and 
Douglas  came  to  his  house.  At  that  time  he  walked 
about  the  streets  with  Douglas,  who  returned  to  his 
house  with  him,  where  they  all  remained  in  conference 
for  some  time.  He  admitted  having  seen  them  after- 
wards at  his  house  at  two  different  times  during  the 
day  and  in  the  night. 

On  five  different  occasions  he  saw  them  in  a  beer 
saloon,  where  they  had  private  conferences  together. 
At  one  of  these  interviews  they  arranged  to  go  to  Ron- 
dout  on  the  following  day,  where  it  was  proposed  to 
commit  a  burglary.  Though  the  plan  was  not  carried 
out,  they  remained  together  on  that  trip  two  days  and 
nights,  and  returning  to  New  York  took  a  meal  together 
at  a  restaurant  before  separating.  Before  going  on  this 
trip  he  told  a  person  (not  an  officer)  that  he  was  going. 


398  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

and  when  he  returned  said  he  had  been  up  the  river 
with  Moshcr  and  Douglas.  In  September  he  requested 
an  employee  at  the  saloon  to  let  him  know  if  he  should 
see  chalk  marks  on  the  cellar  door  of  the  saloon,  as  that 
was  a  signal  that  these  men  were  in  the  city,  and  he  knew 
where  to  find  them.  During  one  of  his  calls  at  the  saloon, 
lie  wrote  a  letter  and  left  it  in  charge  of  the  proprietor, 
directed  to  no  one,  but  to  be  given  to  either  Mosher  or 
Douglas,  showing  their  interests  were  one  and  the  same, 
and  it  made  no  difference  which  of  the  two  got  it.  At 
another  time  he  said  to  the  same  person  :  "  I'll  tell  you 
confidentially  how  I  can  make  from  ten  to  fifteen  thou- 
sand dollars,  but  by  doing  so  I  would  have  to  give  some- 
body away  who  would  be  sent  to  the  State's  Prison  for 
ten  or  twenty  years  or  for  life." 

Thrice  he  met  them  at  a  fortune  teller's,  and  several 
times  on  the  streets  of  New  York. 

In  August  he  again  visited  Philadelphia,  and  this  time 
found  his  way  to  Germantown  and  inquired  about  the 
pecuniary  resources  of  my  family. 

While  on  the  way  to  obtain  the  letter  Mosher  had 
written  to  Mrs.  Murdock,  the  officer  with  him  spoke  of 
his  visit  to  the  same  place  in  company  with  Mosher  and 
Douglas,  and  asked  him  whether  at  the  time  they  were 
in  Rondout  in  September  Charley  Ross  was  with 
them.  *'  He  replied :  "  No  he  was  not  with  us  at  this 
time.'* 

Of  another  officer  who  told  him  that  if  he  had  been 
put  on  the  case  he  would  have  got  the  men,  Westervelt 
inquired  "  How  ?"  The  officer  replied  :  "I  would  have 
watched  you\  my  mate  and  I  would  have  hired  a  house 
near  to  where  you  lived,  and  kept  a  constant  watch  on 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  399 

your  house."  His  reply  to  this  was :  "  Then  you  would 
have  got  us." 

At  every  interview  Superintendent  Walling  had  with 
him,  *he  did  not  know'  the  whereabouts  of  Mosher  and 
Douglas  or  where  they  could  be  found,  and  would  have 
to  wait  for  them  to  communicate  with  him.  The  Super- 
intendent learning  that  he  had  seen  them,  accused  him 
of  deception,  when  he  admitted  having  seen  them  at 
two  different  times  on  the  street,  but  claimed  that  he 
soon  lost  them  in  the  crowd.  He  never  informed  the  au- 
thorities that  Mrs.  Mosher  lived  in  his  house,  or  where 
she  went  to  live  after  she  removed.  Before  the  death 
of  the  men  he  said  he  did  not  know  where  to  get  any 
of  Mosher's  writing,  but  after  they  were  killed  he  recol- 
lected the  letter  Mosher  wrote,  and  which  he  himself 
had  mailed  to  Rondout  He  also  knew  that  another 
person  had  written  to  Mosher,  and,  instead  of  Mosher's 
writing  the  answer,  Westervelt  wrote  it  at  his  dictation, 
by  this  means  preventing  the  authorities  from  obtaining 
the  handwriting  of  the  chief  conspirator. 

He  told  one  witness  that  if  these  men  were  arrested 
the  child  would  not  live  three  days,  an  opinion  on  his 
part  which  accords  precisely  with  every  theory  con- 
tained in  the  letters;  while  the  inference  natural  to  any 
one  not  cognizant  of  the  plans  of  the  abductors  would 
be  that  the  arrest  of  the  thieves  would  secure  the  fruits 
of  their  crime,  that  the  taking  of  the  kidnappers  would 
lead  directly  to  the  recovery  of  the  child. 

On  the  15th  and  19th  of  November,  two  personals 
appeared  in  the  New  York  Herald  with  a  heading  which 
had  never  been  used  before  in  this  correspondence, 
"  Saul  of  Tarsus."     This  had  been  dictated  by  the  writer 


400  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

in  the  letcer  of  November  the  6th.  On  the  day  after 
the  one  fixed  by  that  personal  for  the  meeting,  when 
Westervelt  was  told  by  Mr.  Walling  that  the  parties 
had  failed  to  keep  the  engagement  and  get  the  money 
for  the  child,  he  showed  him  a  memorandum  book  in 
which  was  written  "Saul  of  Tarsus."  There  is  nothing 
in  the  heading  which  could  cause  suspicion  that  it  re- 
ferred to  the  abduction,  but  there  is  in  the  personal 
itself  the  words,  "Action  must  now  be  simultaneous." 
Throughout  the  letters  the  abductors  demanded  that 
the  money  must  be  paid  before  the  child  would  be  given 
up,  while  in  a  personal  in  August  we  had  said,  "Action 
must  be  simultaneous."  When  he  read  this  personal,  so 
similar  to  the  other  which  had  been  published,  with 
which  he  seemed  familiar,  he  concluded  it  must  refer  to 
the  same  thing,  and  wrote  it  in  his  book. 

On  the  evening  of  December  the  I2th  (Saturday), 
the  night  before  the  abductors  were  killed,  he  met  both 
Mosher  and  Douglas  in  a  house,  and  by  appointment 
he  again  met  Douglas  alone  on  the  street  about  8 
o'clock  the  same  night.  They  walked  leisurely  through 
the  streets  until  i  o'clock  in  the  morning,  stopping  at 
restaurants  and  other  places,  passing  police  officers, 
going  near  many  police  stations.  Arriving  at  a  hotel, 
by  invitation  of  Douglas  Westervelt  remains  all  night; 
they  register  fictitious  names,  occupy  the  same  room, 
talk  about  the  child,  speak  about  how  it  is  proposed  to 
get  the  ransom,  make  arrangements  for  a  subsequent 
meeting  at  a  billiard  saloon  on  either  Tuesday  the  15th, 
Wednesday  the  i6th,  or  Thursday  the  17th,  of  the  fol- 
lowing week,  and  leave  the  hotel  early  in  the  morning; 
Douglas  going  to  meet  Mosher,  who  staid  at  a  different 
hotel,  but  Westervelt  to  his  home. 


TRIAL-  OF   WESTERVELT.  4OI 

Ample  opportunity  was  thus  afforded  at  this  time, 
had  he  intended  acting  in  good  faith  with  the  authori- 
ties, to  have  fulfilled  his  engagements  with  them  by 
notifying  them  of  this  meeting,  or  by  causing  the  arrest 
of  Douglas. 

He  is  thus  found  in  company  with  these  men  a  few 
days  before  the  abduction,  and  during  the  five  months 
they  lived  afterwards ;  he  not  only  meets  them,  but  is 
in  company  with  them  for  hours  and  days  at  a  time, 
until  the  night  before  they  were  killed.  He  sleeps  in 
the  same  room  with  Douglas,  leaving  him  early  in  the 
morning  never  again  to  see  him  alive. 

The  defense  mainly  consisted  in  asserting  the  entire 
falsity  of  the  statements  of  the  witnesses  for  the  Com- 
monwealth as  applied  to  him,  and  thus  attempted  to 
nullify  the  charge  sought  to  be  established  against  him, 
that  he  was  in  complicity  with  Mosher  and  Douglas. 
His  counsel  in  his  opening  address  claimed  that  there 
had  been  no  real  proof,  that  it  was  merely  a  suspicion 
that  the  prisoner  was  a  conspirator  with  Mosher  and 
Douglas,  and  stated  that  at  one  period  of  the  case  it 
was  the  intention  of  his  colleague  and  himself  to  have 
offered  no  testimony ;  however,  it  being  the  desire  of 
the  prisoner  to  be  examined,  he  proposed  giving  him 
the  opportunity  of  making  his  own  statement.  The 
principal  witnesses  called  for  the  defense  were  the  pris- 
oner and  his  wife. 

The  main  object  of  Mrs.  Westervelt's  evidence  was 
to  account  for  her  husband's  whereabouts  between  the 
26th  of  June  and  the  7th  of  July,  in  order  to  show  that 
he  did  not  take  an  active  part  in  the  abduction  of  the 
children.    She  accounted  for  each  day  during  that  period, 


402  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

specifically  stating  where  he  had  been,  and  what  he  had 
been  doing.  She  asserted  that  she  did  not  know  he  was 
engaged  by  the  authorities  to  assist  in  looking  for  Mo- 
sher  and  Douglas,  and  that  he  had  not  told  her  where 
he  stayed  the  night  of  the  I2th  of  December. 

Westervelt  in  his  examination  denied  being  crimin- 
ally associated  with  Mosher  and  Douglas.  He  denied 
having  been  in  Philadelphia  or  Germantown  during  the 
latter  part  of  July  or  beginning  of  August.  He  denied 
the  statement  which  the  officer  said  he  made  about 
Charley  Ross  not  being  with  them  when  at  Rondout. 
He  denied  the  statement  about  the  signal  marks  on  the 
cellar  door.  He  admitted  that  he  did  not  inform  Super- 
intendent Walling  of  his  meetings  with  Mosher  and 
Douglas.  He  admitted  that  he  had  seen  Mosher  and 
Douglas  five  times  in  the  beer  saloon.  He  admitted 
that  he  did  not  tell  the  authorities  of  his  appointment 
to  meet  Douglas  on  the  15th,  i6th,  or  17th  of  Decem- 
ber. He  claimed  that  he  never  engaged  to  inform  on 
Mosher,  but  was  willing  to  give  up  Douglas;  yet  gave 
no  reasons  for  not  informing  the  authorities  on  the  last 
night  he  was  in  company  with  him.  He  claimed  that 
through  information  obtained  from  him,  more  know- 
ledge of  the  doings  of  Mosher  and  Douglas  had  been 
gained  than  through  any  other  source — yet  his  inform- 
ation was  always  given  after  it  was  of  no  practical 
benefit. 

Without  stating  further  his  admissions  and  denials, 
the  case  when  the  testimony  closed  chiefly  depended  on 
the  credibility  of  the  witnesses. 

The  District  Attorney,  Mr.  Sheppard,  after  reviewing 
the  testimony  for  the  commonwealth  and  the  prisoner* 
closed  his  address  by  saying : 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  403 

"  Westervelt  and  Mosher  were  thorougly  intimate  and 
cognizant  of  each  other's  acts,  and  that  shows  there 
existed  relations  between  them  which  do  not  appear  on 
the  surface.  Mosher  gives  him  a  letter  to  carry,  shows 
him  the  horse  and  wagon  in  which  the  child  is  to  be 
carried  away ;  Westervelt  seeks  to  discover  if  Mosher's 
house  is  watched ;  he  comes  to  Philadelphia  to  take 
care  of  Mosher's  family,  and  when  they  flee  to  New 
York,  Mosher  places  them  in  Westervelt's  house, 
knowing  that  it  is  a  safe  place  for  them  to  go  to.  They 
reside  there  unreported ;  Mosher  visits  there ;  Wester- 
velt meets  them  by  appointment;  Douglas  tells  Wester- 
velt their  future  plans  about  the  child — all  showing  that 
there  was  a  bond  and  a  link  between  them  which  satis- 
fied them  Westervelt  would  not  betray  them.  If  they 
had  not  understood  each  other  and  had  confidence  in 
each  other,  Douglas  would  not  have  unbosomed  himself 
and  told  him  what  Westervelt  says  he  told  him.  All 
these  facts  are  inexplicable  upon  any  theory  other  than 
that  of  a  relation  between  them  which  satisfied  them 
that  this  man  would  not  *give  them  away.*  There 
were  two  agencies  at  work  in  this  case;  the  Ross 
family  working  through  the  police,  and  the  abductors 
through  the  letters.  Westervelt  comes  in  just  where 
he  is  wanted.  He  gives  Mr.  Walling  sufficient  inform- 
ation to  keep  the  police  employed,  while,  in  the  mean- 
time, the  letters  keep  flowing  in.  *  *  *  Having 
referred  to  the  facts  of  the  case,  I  have  not  endeavored 
to  allude  to  any  matters  which  would  influence  your 
passions :  God  knows  there  is  enough  inflammable  mat- 
ter in  the  case.  I  ask  your  attention  to  the  evidence 
itself  and  to  the  law  bearing  upon  it.     I  ask  you   to 


404  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

consider  that  evidence,  and  to  determine  from  it  this 
transaction,  and  not  to  be  misled  by  any  false  colors 
thrown  over  it ;  and,  in  the  name  of  Providence,  I  trust 
that  your  deliberations  may  have  a  power  over  future 
transactions  that  may  be  a  source  of  congratulation  to 
you  on  future  occasions." 

The  counsel  for  the  prisoner  argued  that  "the  evi- 
dence in  the  case  was  only  of  a  circumstantial  character, 
such  as  leads  only  to  an  inference  of  guilt;  to  convict 
on  such  evidence,  the  consciences  of  the  jury  must  be 
convinced  beyond  the  possibility  of  a  doubt.  No  con- 
jecture, no  inference  would  be  sufficient;  the  conviction 
alone,  that  the  defendant  is  guilty  as  proven  by  the 
evidence,  would  be  sufficient." 

The  Judge  in  his  charge  to  the  jury,  referring  to 
Westervelt's  testimony,  used  the  following  language: 
"  By  his  testimony  there  is  a  direct  issue,  as  to  the 
truth  or  falsity  of  the  evidence;  you  will  reconcile  the 
testimony  of  the  Commonwealth  and  the  prisoner  if 
you  can  ;  but  if  you  cannot,  you  must  be  governed  by 
the  weight  of  the  evidence,  or  the  greater  number  of  wit- 
nesses who  support  a  natural  theory  of  the  case,  or  who 
testify  to  the  greater  number  of  consistent  and  leading 
facts  which  amount  to  proof  of  the  crime  or  innocence  of 
the  prisoner.  But  if  in  the  investigation  of  all  the  facts, 
you  find  a  witness  who  has  stated  some  material  facts 
which  are  not  truthful,  then  his  whole  testimony  must 
be  cast  out,  no  matter  on  which  side  his  evidence  rests; 
for  the  maxim  of  the  law  is,  false  in  one  particular,  false 
in  all.  You  cannot  reconcile  truth  and  falsehood  in 
one  witness ;  but  be  certain  of  the  falsehood,  for  an  in- 
accurate statement,  not  to  the  essence  of  the  offense,  or 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  405 

mistaken  data  in  many  other  questions,  may  be  only 
errors  of  memory,  which  are  not  falsehoods.  Review 
the  testimony  with  calm  judgment,  and  fear  not  to  apply 
every  test  to  its  accuracy.  You  are  to  decide  by  the 
testimony:  if  to  find  the  prisoner  guilty,  it  must  be  be- 
yond a  reasonable  doubt,  or  he  goes  free.  Give  him 
that  doubt,  if  it  be  an  honest,  manly  doubt,  derived  from 
the  whole  testimony;  but  do  not  manufacture  it  from 
weakness  or  sympathy,  either  for  himself  or  his  family, 
for  this  is  no  hour  for  sympathy.  Whilst  you  have 
gazed  upon  that  scene  of  misery  surrounding  that  pris- 
oner's dock  for  three  weeks,  you  must  recollect  that  if 
there  be  guilt  upon  that  brow,  that  for  one  year  and 
two  months  the  voice  of  Charley  Ross  has  been  lost 
to  his  home,  and  that  while  the  prisoner  has  his  chil- 
dren in  life  around  him,  another  father  mourns  his  son 
through  this  terrible  crime." 

The  case  was  given  to  the  jury  on  Saturday  evening, 
September  19th,  and  on  Monday  morning  a  verdict  of 
guilty  was  rendered  on  the  last  three  counts  of  the  in- 
dictment. Efforts  were  at  once  made  by  Westervelt's 
counsel  to  secure  a  new  trial,  but  without  success,  and 
he  was  sentenced  to  pay  a  fine  of  one  dollar,  the  costs 
of  prosecution,  and  to  undergo  an  imprisonment  at 
solitary  confinement  at  labor  for  the  term  of  seven 
years.  The  result  of  this  protracted  trial,  which  con- 
tinued three  weeks,  beginning  August  30th,  and  end- 
ing September  2 1st,  seemed  to  accord  with  public 
sentiment. 

During  all  this  time  great  excitement  prevailed  in  the 
city.  The  trial  was  the  topic  of  conversation  every- 
where, and  the  developments  which  were  made  during 


406  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

its  progress  were  eagerly  sought  for  by  every  one.  Daily 
the  court  room  was  densely  crowded  with  an  audience 
who  listened  attentively  to  every  word,  and  manifested 
the  greatest  interest  to  learn  something  of  this  remark- 
able case,  and  to  hear  read  the  anonymous  letters 
which  had  been  received  from  the  abductors. 

A  large  corps  of  reporters  from  other  cities,  as  well 
as  from  our  own,  was  daily  in  attendance,  and  full  re- 
ports of  the  proceedings  from  day  to  day  were  pub- 
lished in  the  newspapers  both  here  and  in  New  York. 
So  great  was  the  desire  to  learn  the  result  of  the  delib- 
erations of  the  jury  on  Monday  morning,  tliat  before 
the  clock  struck  the  hour  of  ten,  not  only  was  the  court 
room  densely  packed  with  people,  but  the  hall  and  stair- 
way were  packed  with  an  excited  crowd.  The  street 
was  equally  crowded,  to  such  an  extent  that  it  was  diffi- 
cult for  persons  to  make  their  way  through  the  dense 
mass  of  people.  As  soon  as  the  verdict  became  known, 
there  was  a  general  feeling  of  approval  that  a  just  deci- 
sion had  been  reached,  and  the  fact  now  for  the  first 
time  definitely  and  prominently  appeared  to  the  public 
that  Mosher  and  Douglas  were  the  abductors,  and  that 
William  Westervelt  was  joined  with  them  in  their  foul 
conspiracy  to  extort  money  by  the  concealment  of 
Charley  Ross. 

The  two  chief  actors  in  this  great  crime  escaped 
legal  punishment  by  a  felon's  death,  and  the  tliird  is 
now  paying  a  well-deserved  penalty  in  obedience  to  the 
demands  of  violated  law.  Thus  three  of  those  intimately 
connected  with  the  abduction  have  been  brought  to 
justice,  and  have  received  a  merited  punishment  for 
their  awful  guilt. 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  40/ 

The  array  of  testimony  presented  in  this  narrative, 
showing  that  Mosher  and  Douglas  were  the  kidnappers, 
the  fact  that  they  were  suspected  in  the  latter  part  of 
July  of  being  guilty  of  the  crime,  and  the  many  state- 
ments of  their  movements  and  doings  subsequent  to 
that  time,  alluded  to  in  the  history  of  this  case,  will 
naturally  suggest  to  the  reader  the  query,  "  Why  were 
they  not  captured?"  In  reply  to  this  it  should  be  borne 
in  mind  that  very  much  of  what  is  related  of  these  men 
was  learned  after  their  death,  and  it  would  be  very  unjust 
to  hold  the  authorities  responsible  for  pursuing  or  not 
pursuing  a  certain  course  of  action  with  the  light  and 
knowledge  we  now  possess.  There  were  difficulties 
of  no  ordinary  kind  connected  with  the  search  for  these 
men.  The  crime  itself  was  of  so  atrocious  a  character, 
and  the  public  excitement  so  intense,  as  to  make  it 
necessary  for  the  men  continually  to  change  their  local- 
ity, which  is  not  ordinarily  done  by  criminals,  thus 
placing  unusual  obstacles  in  the  way  of  the  police  to 
finding  them.  Besides,  so  long  as  they  had  one  inter- 
ested with  them  in  constant  communication  with  the 
authorities,  they  could,  by  using  the  information  he 
gave  them,  elude  the  police,  and  in  this  they  were  most 
successful,  until  shot  down  while  committing  another 
crime.  It  was  well  stated  in  one  of  our  daily  papers  by 
a  writer  who  was  familiar  with  everything  that  was 
being  done  in  the  search,  that  "the  determined  resist- 
ance of  the  police  soon  became  quite  manifest  to  the 
abductors,  and  every  plan  they  tried  to  devise  to  get  at 
the  ransom  money,  and  then  effect  their  escape,  was  so 
beset  with  danger  to  themselves  that  they  abandoned 
plan  after  plan,  and  so  many  months  passed  away.   This 


408  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

has  been  the  one  great  point  of  difficulty  with  them  in 
attempting  an  exchange  of  the  stolen  child  for  the  ran- 
som money.  If  there  had  been  any  concession  allowed 
to  the  brigands,  any  negotiations  intended  to  recover 
the  child  simply,  and  let  them  get  the  ransom  money 
and  escape,  there  is  but  little  room  for  doubt  that 
Charley  Ross  could  have  been  recovered  long  ago, 
just  as  stolen  bonds  and  the  proceeds  of  bank  robberies 
are  recovered.  Then  child-stealing  would  have  run 
wild  in  the  United  States;  kidnapping  children  for  ran- 
som would  have  been  succeeded  by  the  capture  of  men 
and  women,  for  there  are  men  and  women  for  whom 
brigands  could  have  extorted  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
dollars  of  ransom  money.  But  the  treatment  of  the 
Charley  Ross  case  by  the  police  authorities,  and  the 
excited  public  feeling  on  the  subject,  have  demonstrated 
to  all  malefactors  of  whatever  grade  that  brigandage 
cannot  be  made  a  safe  profession  in  the  United  States.'* 
The  failure  to  find  Charley,  or  even  to  learn  anything 
about  him  after  the  death  of  the  kidnappers,  notwith- 
standing the  extraordinary  efforts  to  that  end,  has  led 
many  to  question  whether  Mosher  and  Douglas  were 
the  abductors.  In  the  minds,  however,  of  those  con- 
versant with  all  the  circumstances,  there  is  not  a  shadow 
of  doubt  that  they  were  the  projectors  and  perpetrators 
of  this  crime.  The  principal  reasons  for  this  belief  will 
be  grouped  together,  so  that  the  reader  may  readily  see 
the  evidences  on  which  it  rests. 

There  are  many  statements  of  facts  interspersed 
through  the  letters,  which  could  not  have  been  known 
to  the  writer  unless  he  had  had  possession  of  the  child- 
ren, facts  which  had  not  been  published  before  the  let- 
ters containing  allusions  to  them  were  written. 


TRIAL  OF   WESTERVELT.  4O9 

In  the  first  letter  it  is  stated  by  the  writer  that  they 
have  got  Charles  Brewster  Ross — his  full  name  being 
here  given,  which,  as  before  stated,  was  no  doubt  elicited 
from  Walter. 

In  letter  No.  7,  it  is  said :  "  He  is  afraid  he  won't  get 
home  in  time  to  go  to  Atlantic  City,  to  be  with  his 
mother  when  Sophy  comes  back."  Such  a  promise 
had  been  made  to  Walter  and  Charley  by  their  mother 
before  she  went  to  Atlantic  City,  and  it  was  so  impressed 
on  the  child's  mind  that,  notwithstanding  his  isolation, 
he  remembered  it,  and  fretted  lest  he  would  not  get 
back  in  time  to  go  to  his  mother  at  the  sea-shore. 

In  No.  8,  the  writer  desiring  to  give  some  evidences 
that  they  had  possession  of  the  child,  says :  "  You  re- 
member his  striped  stockings  are  darned  in  two  or  three 
places  where  they  had  holes  in  them."  Before  receiv- 
ing this  information,  no  person — not  even  the  nurse — 
had  thought  of  the  darns  in  the  stockings,  which  she 
put  on  him  the  afternoon  he  was  taken  away. 

In  the  same  letter  the  following  questions  are  given 
to  ask  Walter:  "Ask  Walter  if  we  did  not  put  the 
blanket  up  in  front  of  him,  and  Charley  in  behind  to 
hide  him  ?  Ask  Walter  if  we  did  not  say  we  would  go 
down  to  Aunt  Susy's  before  we  went  to  the  main  street 
to  buy  torpedoes?"  To  both  of  these  questions  put  to 
Walter,  in  such  a  way  as  not  to  be  leading  ones,  he 
answered  in  the  affirmative.  Again  the  writer  says: 
*'  We  have  seen  Charley  about  four  days  ago,  and  his 
whole  cry  is  he  wants  Walter  to  come  to  him,  and  he 
is  afraid  he  will  not  go  to  Atlantic  City  with  his  mother." 

In  letter  No.  17,  it  is  said:  "Ask  Walter  if  we  did 
not  keep  giving  him  pieces  of  candy  as  we  rode  along?" 
18 


410  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

Walter's  testimony  confirmed  this  statement,  and  he 
said  moreover,  "They  gave  Charley  more  candy  than 
me. 

Also  "  If  you  have  received  any  other  letters  headed 
other  than  Ros  or  Mr.  Ros,  they  are  forgeries."  All 
the  letters  I  received  written  inNthe  handwriting  pecu- 
liar to  this  series  of  letters,  were  addressed  to  "  Ros," 
or  "  Mr.  Ros" — thus  far  confirming  their  assertion 
that  they  were  the  parties  who  stole  and  had  the  child 
in  their  keeping. 

In  letter  No.  i8  the  writer  says,  "  Ask  one  of  your 
domestics  or  Mrs.  Ross  if  Charley  did  not  have  on 
the  afternoon  of  the  first  of  July  a  narrow  faded  pink 
ribbon  tied  around  his  head  to  keep  the  hair  out  of 
his  eyes  ?"  This  ribbon  was  not  thought  of  by  any 
one  until  attention  was  called  to  it  in  this  letter,  when 
a  part  of  the  same  piece  of  ribbon  was  found  in  the 
house.  This  fact  is  mentioned  by  the  writer  as  posi- 
tive proof  that  they  have  possession  of  Charley.  In 
letter  No.  19  reference  is  made  to  Charley's  suflTering 
from  a  complaint  sometimes  incident  to  childhood. 
On  inquiry  it  was  found  that  on  one  or  two  occasions 
while  at  home  he  suffered  from  the  same  ailment 

These  among  other  things  are  stated  by  the  writer 
of  the  anonymous  letters,  and  are  strong  proofs  that 
whoever  wrote  them,  took  the  children  away  and  had 
control  of  Charley.  In  addition  to  these  evidences  is 
the  fact  that  Mosher  was  the  writer  of  the  letters. 
They  are  in  a  hand  pronounced  by  experts  to  be  iden- 
tical with  that  of  the  letter  procured  at  Rondout,  and 
which  Westervelt  saw  William  Mosher  write. 

Again,  Mosher  and  Douglas  knew  early  in  August 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  4II 

that  they  were  suspected  of  being  the  abductors,  and 
became  thenceforth  fugitives  for  months,  being  without 
a  home,  wandering  from  place  to  place  to  elude  the 
pursuing  officers,  which  would  have  been  unnecessary- 
had  they  been  innocent.  Again,  Douglas  on  the 
night  before  he  was  killed  said  to  Westervelt,  "  What 
could  they  do  with  us  if  they  did  get  us  ?  They 
would  have  to  prove  it,  they  would  have  to  find  some 
one  who  saw  us  with  the  child ;"  and  added  furtjher 
that  they  were  about  to  adopt  a  new  plan  for  exchang- 
ing the  money  for  the  child;  and  before  dying  he  con- 
fessed— "  I  helped  Mosher  to  steal  Charley  Ross.'* 
A  further  proof  is  the  recognition  by  Walter  of  the 
bodies  of  the  two  men  at  the  Morgue  in  Brooklyn,  as 
the  persons  who  took  Charley  and  himself  away  the 
afternoon  of  the  ist  of  July. 

And  since  the  death  of  these  men  I  have  not  re- 
ceived any  letters  written  in  the  same  hand  or  style  as 
those  sent  me  up  to  the  time  of  that  event.  In  addi- 
tion to  these  evidences  that  they  were  the  kidnappers, 
is  the  admission  of  Masher's  family  that  he  and 
Douglas  stole  the  child.  It  will  be  seen  by  this  sum- 
ming up  of  these  various  evidences,  that  we  are  not 
resting  on  a  mere  suspicion,  but  it  has  been  fully  as- 
certained and  clearly  proved  that  these  were  the  men 
who  committed  the  crime. 

There  are  very  good  reasons  also  for  believing  that 
neither  Mosher  nor  Douglas  retained  possession  of 
the  child  after  the  night  of  the  2d  of  July,  but  placed 
him  in  the  care  of  either  a  confederate  or  of  some  in- 
nocent party,  and  although  full  reliance  cannot  be 
placed   on   what    is   written   in   the    letters    on    this 


412  CHARLEY  ROSS.  ♦ 

point,  yet  there  are  many  circumstances  corroborating 
the  statements  of  the  writer.  I  propose  to  make  selec- 
tions from  the  letters  of  what  is  there  said  on  this 
point,  and  to  follow  them  with  facts  and  theories 
derived  from  other  sources. 

The  children  were  taken  away  the  afternoon  of  July 
I  St.  On  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  July  the  first  letter 
from  the  abductors,  dated  Philadelphia,  July  3d,  was 
received.      ^ 

In  letter  No  7,  it  is  stated  as  a  reason  why  they  had 
not  replied  sooner  to  one  of  our  personals,  that  "  they 
had  gone  into  the  country,  as  much  as  anything  to 
see  how  Charley  was." 

In  No  II  it  is  said,  "  We  will  give  you  the  satisfac- 
tion of  knowing  that  he  is  within  100  miles  of  this 
city."  At  the  time  this  letter  was  written  they  were 
living  in  this  city,  as  is  indicated  not  only  by  the  date 
and  post-mark,  but  also  by  the  quick  reply  we  had  to 
our  personals,  as  we  frequently  received  answers  the 
same  day  on  which  the  personals  appeared. 

In  No  13  it  is  said,  "Your  child  is  not  in  possession 
of  any  woman  or  family." 

In  No  16:  "  We  would  require  at  least  a  few  hours 
to  examine  the  money,  and  then  but  a  few  hours 
more  would  be  necessary  to  place  your  child  in  your 
possession." 

In  No  17:  "We  saw  Charley  about  four  days 
ago." 

In  No  18  :  "  We  don't  go  near  him  often;  we  have 
nothing  to  do  with  guarding  him,  though  we  have 
seen  him  four  or  five  times  since  July  the  2d." 

In  No  19:  "  His  custodian  got  him  some  medicine 
which  helped  him." 


*  TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  4I3 

In  No  21 :  "I  tell  you  positively,  and  to  save  you 
further  trouble  and  anxiety,  that  your  child  has  not 
been  seen  by  any  human  being  since  the  3d  of  July, 
other  than  by  the  party  who  have  him  in  charge. 
We  could  not  take  him  five  miles  without  being  ar- 
rested." These  are  the  principal  statements  made  in 
the  letters  tending  to  show  that  the  abductors  placed 
the  child  ia  the  keeping  of  some  one,  while  they 
carried  on  the  negotiations  to  get  the  money.  Other 
reasons  for  believing  that  they  put  him  in  charge  of 
some  one  else,  are  as  follows  :  Mosher's  family  say 
that  by  the  3d  of  July  both  Douglas  and  Mosher  had 
returned  to  their  home  in  Philadelphia.  And  it  is  not 
probable  that  they  brought  Charley  to  their  house, 
but  more  likely  that  during  the  interval  between  the 
1st  and  the  3d  of  July  they  drove  away  with  him  and 
handed  him  over  to  the  person  with  whom  previous 
arrangements  had  been  made  to  secrete  him,  while  at 
the  same  time  they  disposed  of  the  horse  and  wagon. 

About  the  ist  of  August  they  left  this  city,  and 
never  returned  to  stay  any  length  of  time,  having  no 
home.  They  remained  but  a  short  time  in  any  one  place 
as  the  dates  and  post-marks  of  the  letters  indicate. 
At  one  time  we  hear  of  them  in  Bridgeport,  Connecti- 
cut, the  place  from  which  they  took  the  boat,  again  on 
tlie  river  near  Newark,  New  Jersey,  where  they  altered 
the  boat  under  one  of  the  bridges  of  that  city,  and 
again  they  go  in  the  same  boat  to  Bay  Ridge,  Long 
Island.  They  knew  that  they  were  being  closely 
watched  and  tracked,  and  were  liable  to  be  arrested  at 
any  time  for  this  very  crime  of  child-stealing,  and  cer- 
tainly they  would  not  keep  the  child  with  them  during 


414  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

their  wanderings,  for  had  they  been  captured,  the  fact 
of  the  child  being  with  them  would  have  been  indubi- 
table evidence  of  their  guilt,  and  to  this  Douglas  re- 
ferred when  he  said  to  Westervelt;  "they  would  have  to 
prove  it  on  us  ;  they  would  have  to  find  some  one  who 
saw  us  with  the  child."  Besides,  the  shrewd  scoundrel 
jvho  was  working  out  the  plot,  and  who  had  so  skill- 
fully and  carefully  guarded  every  avenue  to  prevent 
detection,  can  hardly  be  supposed  to  have  had  in 
his  actual  possession  the  very  strongest  evidence  of 
his  atrocious  crime,  and  to  have  been  carrying  around 
with  him  the  living  and  conclusive  testimony  of  his 
guilt  For  these  reasons  we  believe  that  as  soon  as 
possible  the  child  was  placed  in  charge  of  some  one 
else  to  keep  until  the  exchange  could  be  arranged, 
and  that  the  abductors  seldom  went  to  the  place  of  his 
concealment. 

Daily  are  we  met  by  the  inquiries,  "  What  are  your 
theories  of  the  case  now?  Do  you  think  Charley 
is  still  alive?  After  the  death  of  Mosher  and  Doug- 
las, what  motive  could  any  one  have  for  continuing  to 
keep  him  ?  " 

In  answer  to  the  first  question,  we  can  have  no  the- 
ory outside  of  the  facts  which  have  been  detailed  in 
this  history,  and  as  to  the  consummation — be  it  happy 
or  sorrowful — we  look  with  a  certainty  to  the  future, 
under  Providence,  to  disclose  it.  In  answer  to  the  sec- 
ond question,  we  are  bound  by  both  reason  and  instinct 
to  assume  that  the  child  is  still  alive  until  we  know  that 
he  is  dead.  So  long  as  his  dead  body  is  not  found,  or 
evidence  obtained  to  prove  his  death,  so  long  must  we 
indulge  the  hope  that  he  will  eventually  be  restored 


TRIAL  OF   WESTERVELT.  415 

alive.  The  evidence  is  as  conclusive  as  anything  short 
of  actual  visible  proof  can  be,  that  either  the  child  was 
living  on  Saturday,  December  12th,  1874,  or  else  that 
the  brigands  did  not  know  anything  to  the  contrary  at 
that  time.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  also  that  the 
abductors  were  marked  men,  well  known  to  the  author- 
ities, suspected  of  the  kidnapping,  and  they  were  fully 
aware  of  the  fact  that  they  were  being  hunted  for,  and 
that  too  by  those  whose  vigilance  and  persistence  was 
equal  to  their  own.  Had  they  lived  they  would  at 
some  time  early  in  the  future  most  certainly  have  been 
arrested.  Possessing  this  knowledge,  it  would  seem  in- 
credible that  they  would  add  the  crime  of  wilful  murder 
to  that  already  committed;  besides,  it  was  their  inter- 
est to  keep  the  child  alive,  so  long  as  they  entertained 
any  hope  of  obtaining  the  ransom,  which  they  had  not 
abandoned  the  night  before  they  were  killed,  as  stated 
by  Douglas  to  Westervelt.  Had  the  child  died  a  natural 
death,  we  cannot  see  any  reasons  for  withholding  the 
information  from  us.  •  As  to  the  motive  any  one  could 
have  in  keeping  him,  after  the  death  of  the  principals 
in  the  crime,  many  conjectures  can  be  made;  but  they 
are  only  conjectures,  and  afford  little  light  and  less 
comfort  to  any  one.  At  first  sight  it  would  seem  that 
an  accomplice  would  at  once  give  up  the  child  after  his 
associates  were  dead,  upon  whose  management  of  the 
case  depended  the  successful  exchange  of  the  prize  for 
a  ransom.  But  would  not  the  same  cupidity  which 
actuated  him  to  receive  the  stolen  child  cause  the  same 
person  to  keep  him  still,  in  the  hope  of  getting  the 
same  amount  that  was  demanded  as  a  ransom  by  the 
abductors  while  they  lived  ? 


41 6  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

It  is  a  certainty  that  for  five  months,  from  July  istto 
December  I2th,  Charley  was  most  effectually  con- 
cealed. We  have  never  had  a  single  trace  of  him  after 
Walter  was  dropped  from  the  wagon ;  and  as  he  was 
successfully  hidden  away  for  so  long  a  time,  despite  the 
diligent  search  which  had  been  made  for  him,  it  can  be 
seen  how  easily  he  could  still  be  concealed  by  the  saiAe 
person  in  the  same  place.  This  theory,  however,  is 
based  on  the  supposition  that  he  was  placed  with  a 
confederate,  which  is  by  no  means  certain.  He  may 
have  been  placed  in  charge  of  persons  ignorant  of  his 
identity  and  that  any  such  crime  as  the  abduction  of 
Charley  Ross  had  been  committed — living  in  some 
isolated  place,  where  little  or  no  communication  is  had 
with  the  outer  world. 

Fear  of  detection  would  be  a  powerful  motive  to 
prevent  this  person  (if  a  confederate)  from  giving  him 
up,  not  only  from  fear  of  lawful  punishment,  but  of  an 
aroused  and  avenging  community.  Charley  when 
taken  away  could  talk  plainly,  and  there  is  little  doubt 
but  that  he  would  be  able  to  give  information  as  to 
where  he  had  been  and  the  party  who  had  charge  of 
him  for  so  long  a  time.  These  are  but  theories.  We 
have  no  information  which  sheds  one  ray  of  light 
on  the  mysterious  subject,  and  my  reader,  with  the  facts 
which  have  been  presented  in  this  volume,  is  as  fully 
able  to  draw  correct  conclusions  as  those  who  have  been 
conversant  with  all  the  circumstances  from  the  time  of 
the  abduction  to  the  present  day. 

One  of  the  remarkable  things  connected  with  the 
search  in  this  case,  and  which  is  inexplicable,  is  that  no 
reliable  trace  was  ever  found  of  the  horse  and  buggy 


TRIAL    OF    WESTER VELT.  41/ 

used  by  the  kidnappers  in  conveying  the  children  away, 
even  with  the  added  stimulus  of  a  reward  of  one  thou- 
sand dollars  which  was  offered  for  any  information 
which  would  lead  to  their  discovery;  and  through  the 
great  and  wide  publicity  which  was  given  by  descrip- 
tive hand-bills,  posters  and  newspapers,  it  was  reasona- 
ble to  suppose  that  some  one  would  have  come  forward 
who  could  give  information  of  them  after  the  1st  of 
July.  It  would  seem  sheer  impossibility  that  the 
horse  and  wagon  could  have  been  so  absolutely  and 
successfully  disposed  of  Yet  so  far  as  our  knowledge 
extends  they  vanished  from  sight  as  though  dissolved 
in  air. 

There  is  exhibited  from  the  beginning  of  this  trans- 
action to  the  death  of  the  criminals  a  certain  complete- 
ness in  detail  and  finish  in  carrying  out  all  the'  plans 
that  precludes  the  idea  that  the  kidnappers  were  ruf- 
fians of  the  vulgar  type — and  now  that  the  crime  is 
inaugurated  there  would  no  doubt  have  been  plenty  of 
imitators  had  these  men  been  successful  in  proving  that 
this  branch  of  thieving  industry  would  be  profitable. 

In  reviewing  the  circumstances  of  the  case  from  the 
time  of  the  abduction,  everything  appears  to  us  dark 
and  impenetrable.  Failure  has  marked  every  effort  to 
find  the  criminals,  or  discover  their  precious  booty; 
and  it  was  only  after  human  skill  had  failed  that  the 
retributive  justice  of  God  brought  to  light  and  punish- 
ment the  wicked  perpetrators  of  the  crime.  Failure  ac- 
companied every  movement  of  the  police  of  our  own  city 
to  trace  the  offenders  whilst  they  were  living  in  our 
midst;  failure  followed  the  humane  purposes  of  some  of 
the  wisest  and  most  thoughtful  of  our  citizens,  who  were 
i8* 


41 8  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

intensely  interested,  not  only  in  the  restoration  of  the 
child,  but  also  in  the  discovery  of  the  kidnappers,  and 
in  protecting  society  from  similar  depredations  in  the 
future;  failure  attended  every  step  of  the  pursuit,  and  all 
the  plans  to  capture  the  men,  after  they  fled  to  New  York 
and  its  vicinity:  and  since  the  sudden  and  fearful  death 
of  the  villains  who  had  been  thus  hounded,  the  same 
darkness  broods  over  the  destiny  of  the  missing  boy, 
and  the  same  want  of  success  follows  every  well  devised 
scheme  and  every  hopeful  theory  that  has  attended  the 
case  from  the  very  beginning.  In  the  history  of  crime  it 
has  rarely,  if  ever,  happened  that  so  much  effort  has  been 
concentrated,  and  so  much  means  expended,  in  any  one 
direction,  followed  by  such  an  entire  want  of  success. 

To  God  alone  belongeth  secret  things;  in  His  own 
way,  and  in  His  own  time,  will  He  reveal  what  He 
wills. 

Two  years  have  passed  away  since  Charley  was  kid- 
napped from  his  home,  and  in  the  meantime  events  of 
far  more  startling  moment  have  taken  place,  and  for  a 
time  have  engrossed  public  attention,  and  have  then 
passed  out  of  the  public  mind,  to  be  followed  by  others; 
and  yet  the  continued  absence  of  this  little  child  is  still 
as  fresh  as  the  day  on  which  it  became  known  that  he 
was  stolen.  The  dread  uncertainty^  which  surrounds 
his  fate,  and  the  loathing  of  the  criminals  who  so  vio- 
lated every  human  instinct,  gives  the  matter  such  a 
terrible  reality  that  but  few  parents  will  easily  forget  it. 
The  public  now  know  that  there  are  creatures  ready  and 
able  to  commit  the  heinous  offense  of  child-stealing 
upon  sufficient  inducement,  that  is,  a  reasonable  pros- 


TRIAL   OF   WESTER VELT.  4I9 

pect  of  mere  gain;  and  now  realize  the  feeling  of  inse- 
curity in  the  impressive  fact  that  it  is  a  daylight  crime 
— one  needing  no  shadow  of  darkness — one  in  truth 
that  can  be  done  only  during  the  play  hours  of  broad 
day;  for  with  the  coming  night,  so  propitious  to  ordin- 
ary crime,  comes  the  sleeping  time  of  the  child,  which 
is  its  best  protection.  The  ease  also  with  which  the 
crime  can  be  committed  is  now  brought  home  to  every 
one,  and  the  tremendous  influence  which  may  be 
brought  to  bear  on  parents  by  means  of  threatening 
letters,  by  which  the  kidnappers  hold  the  key  to  the 
situation,  is  fearful  to  think  of  Well  may  parents  be 
struck  with  terror  in  realizing  this  peril,  and  in  feeling 
that  their  children  are  no  longer  safe  upon  the  lawns  or 
lanes  which  were  once  thought  as  safe  as  the  nursery 
or  school-room.  Well  may  they  shudder  at  the  bare 
possibility  of  one  of  their  offspring  being  snatched 
from  them  by  miscreants  for  vile  traffic ;  and  truly  may 
the  alarming  questions  be  asked :  Who  is  safe  ?  What 
parent  can  trust  his  children  out  of  his  sight,  if  kid- 
napping is  so  simple  and  recovery  so  doubtful,  nay 
impossible  ? 

In  some  of  its  aspects  this  crime  is  worse  than  mur- 
der, being  not  only  torture  to  the  child,  who  by  terror 
and  confinement  must  necessarily  suffer  greatly,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  anguish  of  the  parents.  So  startling,  in- 
deed, is  the  subject  in  all  its  bearings,  that  it  has  as- 
sumed a  national  character,  and  really  affects  every 
household — none  can  be  indifferent.  The  instincts  of 
parental  affection  are  identical  the  civilized  world  over. 
There  is  scarcely  a  father  or  mother  throughout  the  land 
who  has  not  been  directly  struck  in  thetenderest  affec- 


420  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

tion  and  the  most  precious  interests  of  life  by  this 
flagrant  instance  of  kidnapping  a  little  child,  solely  for 
the  purpose  of  extorting  a  sum  of  money  as  a  ransom; 
and  the  protection  demanded  by  childish  helplessness 
makes  all  men  akin  in  resisting  this  most  unnatural 
crime.  It  is  for  these  reasons  that  public  feeling  has 
been  so  intensely  aroused,  and  continues  to  be  so  won- 
derfully alive  to  this  case,  and  not  simply  because 
Charley  Ross  was  stolen  and  has  not  been  recovered. 
In  our  blessed  religion  we  note  as  a  dijstinguishing 
trait  of  that  Charity  and  Love  which  separates  Chris- 
tianity from  all  other  systems  of  faith,  that  the  Master 
loved  little  children  and  bade  them  come  to  him,  and 
found  in  a  little  child  the  highest  type  of  faith,  truth 
and  purity;  and  no  incident  in  the  scriptures  is  more 
sadly  interesting  than  that  of  Joseph  who  was  sold 
into  slavery  by  his  brethren.  To  this  day  nothing 
appeals  to  our  sympathies  so  readily  as  the  sorrow  of 
little  children.  There  is  not,  cannot  be  a  mother  who 
does  not  feel  that  she  would  rather  see  her  child  dead 
than  be  subjected  to  a  fate  which  has  befallen  our  little 
boy.  The  imagination  surrounds  the  victim  with 
terrors  compared  to  which  death  would  be  a  blessing. 
Imprisonment,  starvation,  stripes,  neglect,  lonely  weep- 
ing through  the  long  night  watches ;  no  love  to 
caress  him,  to  minister  to  his  childish  ailings,  to 
rescue  and  to  nourish  him.  The  agony  and  suspense 
lives  on ;  and  the  thoughts  will  come  up :  With 
whom  is  he?  Are  they  kind  to  him?  Do  his  childish 
eyes  which  knew  nothing  but  home  and  home  kind- 
ness see  sights  revolting?  Is  he  closely  confined,  or 
has  he  been  carried  far  away  to  avoid  pursuit?     Does 


TRIAL   OF   WESTERVELT.  421 

he  hear  brutal  language  ?  Are  the  scenes  about  him 
so  strange  that  his  memory  of  us  gradually  fails,  and 
his  recollections  of  love,  home  and  friends  will  all  be 
swept  away  ?  Will  he  be  taught  to  forget  the  hands 
that  nurtured  him  and  raised  him  from  infancy,  and 
taught  him  to  say,  "Our  Father  which  art  in  Heaven," 
or  that  other  simple  prayer,  "  Now  I  lay  me  down 
to  sleep,"  and  will  he  regard  some  bad  scheming 
woman  as  his  mother?  Stolen  by  thieves,  will  he  be 
taught  to  be  a  thief?  Will  he  grow  to  love  crime? 
Will  he  live  to  reap  the  bitter  fruits  of  it?  Will  he 
live  to  grow  up  in  ignorance  of  love,  gentleness,  good- 
ness, in  ignorance  of  all  that  he  should  know,  in  knowl- 
edge of  pain,  hunger,  ill-treatment,  in  knowledge  of  all 
that  he  should  never  know? 

Stern  death  would  be  far  kinder  than  the  rude  arms 
that  snatched  away  our  little  boy ;  for  when  death 
robs  us  of  our  loved  ones,  we  recall  with  a  sad  pleasure 
the  winsome  ways ;  but  when  this  greater  desolation 
comes  the  remembrance  of  pet  words,  childish  phrases, 
cunning  tricks,  and  affectionate  glances  crowds  upon 
us  until  memory,  too  faithful,  forces  us  almost  to  pray 
for  utter  forgetfulness. 

Did  we  know  that  Charley  had  died,  then  would  we 
know  his  abiding  place;  would  know  that  danger,  sick- 
ness, trouble,  sin  and  pain,  could  disturb  him  no  more. 
The  very  uncertainty  increases  our  agony  a  thousand 
fold. 

"  Doomed  through  long  suspense  to  bear 
The  hope  that  keeps  alive  despair." 

Yet  this  very  uncertainty  incites  us  to  continued  effort 
to  learn  what  has  become  of  him,  and  makes  us  more 


422  CHARLEY   ROSS. 

eagerly  anxious  to  find  him  if  living.  Is  it  too  much 
then  to  ask  a  sympathizing  public  to  continue  all  efforts 
to  aid  in  finding  the  place  of  concealment  of  our  little 
boy,  or  in  recovering  him? 

The  wail  is  still  heard — so  oft  repeated — no  tidings — 
unless  to  end  in  disappointment.  Will  you  not,  fathers 
and  mothers,  work  now  and  earnestly,  lest  the  hour 
draw  nigh  when,  in  the  desolation  of  your  own  homes, 
your  hearts  may  perchance  take  up  the  sorrowful  plaint 
of  "a  stolen  child,"  and  that  child  your  own  ?  Should 
this  appeal  result  in  discovering  the  hiding-place  of 
our  little  boy  and  he  be  found  alive,  every  parent  and 
every  child  in  the  land  would  breathe  more  freely,  and 
thousands  of  hearts  would  be  filled  and  thrilled  with 
great  gladness,  when  the  telegraph  and  the  press  shall 
announce  to  the  sympathizing  public,  "The  lost  is 
found;  Charley  Ross  is  home  again!" 

It  has  frequently  been  said,  "So  long  a  time  has 
elapsed  since  Charley  was  taken  from  his  home  that  you 
would  not  know  him;  he  would  be  so  much  changed  in 
his  appearance  that  he  could  not  be  recognized  even  by 
his  parents."  Yes,  his  beautiful  curls  may  be  cut  off; 
his  face  may  be  stained,  or  even  burnt  by  acids,  as  has 
been  done  with  other  stolen  children ;  but  his  mouth 
will  be  wreathed  with  the  same  familiar  smile,  and  his 
large,  full  eyes  dance  in  the  same  well-remembered 
loving  way;  the  expression  of  his  face  will  still  be  that 
of  Charley  Ross,  and  of  no  one  else.  Should  he  ever 
grow  out  of  our  recognition,  the  child  would  surely 
know  his  mother.  The  early  impressions  of  home  and 
its  surroundings  will  never  be  obliterated;  the  incidents 
connected  with  his  abduction — his  being  taken  away 


TRIAL   OF    WESTERVELT.  423 

with  Walter  in  the  wagon,  and  afterwards  his  being 
driven  off  without  his  brother;  his  distress  and  loneh- 
ness,  his  longing  for  home,  his  solitary  confinement — 
all  these  things,  so  terrible  to  a  child,  have  made  im- 
pressions on  his  childish  memory  which  never  will  be 
effaced,  except  by  death. 

Whatever  darkness  still  enshrouds  this  case,  and 
however  hopeless  it  may  look  to  others,  so  long  as 
there  remains  a  doubt  as  to  whether  the  child  is  living 
or  dead,  our  duty  urges  and  our  affections  stimulate  us 
to  a  persistent  and  eager  pursuit  in  the  search  for  our 
missing  boy.  Hitherto  we  have  left  nothing  undone 
that  we  knew  how  to  do ;  nothing  untried  which  had 
any  reasonable  appearance  of  yielding  success ;  nothing 
untraced,  however  slight  or  trifling,  which  seemed  to 
lead  in  the  direction  of  the  lost  one.  Our  time,  our 
energies,  our  thoughts,  and  our  means,  have  been 
unsparingly  given  to  this  object,  and  we  have  the 
same  unchanged  purpose  before  us  for  the  future — 
leaving  the  ninety  and  nine  "safe  in  the  fold,"  we  pur- 
pose still  to  look  for  the  "  one  that  is  not."  Our  search 
is  by  no  means  a  hopeless  one,  and  so  long  as  we  do  not 
know  that  he  is  dead,  we  have  a  basis  of  trust  on  which 
to  work.  Trusting  the  result  to  the  Providence  of  Him 
whose  Fatherly  care  is  over  all  His  children,  and  whose 
promises  are  to  us  and  our  children,  we  are  bound  to 
use  all  the  means  He  affords  us  to  find  out  what  has 
become  of  our  unfortunate  child;  and  yet  the  constant 
stretching  of  the  hand  to  reach  something  tangible  in 
the  midst  of  the  darkness  is  a  fearful  strain  on  our  faith. 
Those  only  who  can  put  themselves  in  our  place,  by 
imagining  the  little  one  they  so  tenderly  and  lovingly 


424  CHARLEY    ROSS. 

lift  to  their  knee  snatched  from  them,  as  has  been  oui 
boy,  can  in  any  degree  understand  us  when  we  say  our 
life's  work  is  to  seek  and  to  find  the  lost  one  of  out 
household. 

We,  therefore,  send  this  unvarnished  story  of  our 
misfortune,  and  of  this  great  wrong,  on  a  mission  to  its 
readers,  in  the  hope  that  familiarized  with  the  features 
of  Charley,  by  looking  at  his  picture  and  stimulated 
by  the  plain  recital  of  the  facts  here  narrated,  and  we 
trust,  blessed  of  God,  some  one  of  them  directed  in  this 
search  may  be  the  happy  means  of  restoring  him  to 
his  home. 

We  are  almost  daily  in  receipt  of  some  intelligence 
which  keeps  alive  the  hope  that  out  of  the  multitude 
of  means  employed,  we  may  get  sufficient  light  to  guide 
us  to  a  successful  issue.  Out  of  this  personal  suffering 
has  come  this  much  of  public  good,  and  we  derive 
great  satisfaction  from  it,  that  the  want  of  success  in 
this,  the  first  clearly  defined  case  of  brigandage  in  this 
country,  has  rendered  for  years  to  come,  a  repetition 
of  the  crime  most  unlikely.  The  intense  public  indig- 
nation which  this  abduction  has  aroused,  the  wide- 
spread publicity  it  has  obtained,  will  deter  the  boldest 
thieves  from  attempting  a  like  outrage.  This  is  cer- 
tainly a  source  of  great  gratulation  to  the  public,  and 
most  heartily,  although  mourning  our  own  loss,  are 
^^e  able  to  join  in  it. 

God  save  other  parents  from  a  like  trial,  and  all 
other  children  from  the  fate  of  our  dear  little  Charley. 


APPENDIX. 

FTER  I  had  finished  writing  the  narrative  of 
the  abduction  and  search  for  my  Httle  son,  and 
it  was  almost  all  in  type,  I  received  the  follow- 
ing note  from  Professor  Leib,  of  Saint  Paul,  Minnesota, 
whose  son  Freddie  unaccountably  disappeared  about 
five  years  ago,  and  has  never  since  been  heard  from: 

Mr.  C.  K.  Ross. — Dear  Sir. — I  learn  you  are  expecting  to  publish  a 
book  on  the  abduction  of  and  search  for  your  dear  little  son  Charley. 
If,  in  the  course  of  its  pages,  you  could  briefly  allude  to  the  loss  of  our 
dear  little  Freddie,  as  narrated  in  the  enclosed  circular,  I  would  be  very 
thankful.  W.  H.  Leib. 

Allusion  has  been  briefly  made  in  the  book  to  the 
loss  of  Mr.  Leib's  son,  but  it  has  not  been  so  fully  no- 
ticed as  I  should  have  been  glad  to  have  stated  it,  had 
I  known  the  wishes  of  the  parents.  On  receiving  the 
above  note,  I  proposed  to  add  an  appendix  to  my  nar- 
rative, containing  such  an  account  of  the  disappearance 
of  the  child,  and  the  search  for  him,  as  the  father 
might  prepare.  With  this  explanation  the  following 
letter  and  circular  are  added,  with  the  hope  and  prayer 
that  the  further  publicity  of  this  case  of  kidnapping, 
which  will  be  given  to  it  by  means  of  this  book,  may 
result  in  awakening  a  more  extended  interest  in  behalf 
of  Freddie  Leib,  and  in  restoring  to  his  distressed  par- 
ents their  long  absent  child. 

(425) 


426  APPENDIX. 

Saint  Paul,  Minn.,  October  ^j-,  iSjs- 

W.  C.  LocHERTY,  Esq.,  317  Broadway,  N.  Y. — Kind  Friend : — 
To  your  kind  favor  desiring  me  to  refresh  your  memory'  with  the  partic- 
ulars regarding  the  loss  of  my  little  son,  I  have  deemed  best  to  reply  in 
the  form  of  a  circular  which  would  also  serve  for  the  public  whenever  I 
Lave  occasion  thus  to  use  it. 

It  was  in  the  summer  of  1871,  and  I  had  been  located  in  Quincy, 
Ills.,  only  a  little  more  than  a  year,  when  Freddie  disappeared  (Freddie 
Lcib — pronounced  "  Libe").  My  profession  was  that  of  a  vocalist  and 
teacher  of  vocal  music,  and  as  such  I  was  employed  at  the  Quincy 
Female  Seminary.  My  first  year's  work  having  just  ended,  and  the 
Seminary  closed  for  the  usual  Summer  Vacation.  I  went  to  Chicago,  ex- 
pecting to  visit  friends  for  a  few  weeks,  and  to  remain  in  Chicago  if 
certain  offers  made  me  by  parties  there  proved  to  be  acceptable.  I  had 
left  my  wife  and  three  children — Freddie  being  one  of  them— well  and 
happy,  on  Wednesday,  the  2 1st  day  of  June,  and  had  been  in  Chicago 
just  a  week,  when,  on  Wednesday,  June  28,  I  received  a  telegram  from 
my  wife,  stating  that  Freddie  was  "  missing  since  Monday  evening,  and 
no  trace  yet."  I  at  once  took  the  night  express  on  the  C.  B.  &  Q.  R. 
R.  and  reached  home  early  next  morning.  You  will  observe  that  it 
was  now  already  two  days  and  three  nights  since  he  disappeared.  News 
of  the  sad  event  had,  for  reasons  that  you  will  gather  from  what  follows, 
only  just  now  become  general ;  and  I  found  the  city  in  excitement  as 
I  hurried  to  my  distracted  family.  With  the  kindly  aid  of  the  mayor 
and  other  city  officers,  a  large  meeting  of  citizens  was  hurriedly  assembled 
at  the  City  Hall,  and  a  thorough  and  systematic  search  instituted.  Tele- 
grams were  sent  out  in  every  direction,  and  a  liberal  reward  offered. 
This  done,  I  devoted  myself  to  the  task  of  finding  out  the  circumstances 
under  which  he  disappeared.     They  are  substantially  as  follows  : 

I  learned  from  my  wife  that  Freddie  had  left  the  house  at  about  six 
o'clock,  P.  M.,  ^^  ith  instructions  from  the  hired  girl  to  look  for  his  brother 
Charley,  and  tell  him  to  get  ready  for  supper. 

Freddie  had  not  been  in  the  habit  of  leaving  the  house,  or  its  imme- 
diate vicinity,  without  permission  or  to  do  some  errand. 

The  day  had  been  very  warm,  and  after  repeated  entreaties,  his  mother 
had  allowed  him  to  remove  his  shoes  and  run  barefoot  during  the  after- 
noon. He  had  spent  most  of  the  day  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street, 
playing  in  and  about  some  old  omnibuses  and  carriages  that  stood  about 
a  carriage  manufactory.  Part  of  the  time  he  was  alone,  and  part  of  it 
there  was  with  him  a  little  colored  boy  (child  of  the  servant  of  the  house 


APPENDIX.  427 

where  we  boarded).  Freddie  was  passionately  fond  of  horses,  and  of 
riding  in  any  kind  of  conveyance.  He  exhibited  this  fondness  by  run- 
ning into  the  street,  and  hanging  on  the  backs  of  buggies  or  wagons,  and 
there  taking  a  swinging  ride  of  four  or  five  rods.  Sometimes  parties,  at 
his  request  for  a  ride,  would  stop  and  take  him  in,  and  after  a  little  dis- 
tance let  him  down  again,  when  he  always  came  back  to  his  play,  at  or 
near  the  house. 

It  was  near  seven  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  his  disappearance,  when 
the  family  (Dr.  Rushlanb's)  with  whom  we  were  then  boarding,  sat 
down  to  tea.  The  other  little  son,  Charley,  who  was  two  years  older 
than  Freddie,  had  in  the  meantime  come  in,  but  had  seen  nothing  of 
Freddie.  The  supper  bell  was  rung  a  second  time  for  Freddie,  all  the 
others  being  present  at  the  table.  But  as  he  failed  to  appear,  Mrs.  Leib 
became  very  anxious,  and  leaving  the  others  at  the  table,  started  out  to 
look  for  him.  Just  at  that  moment  a  valued  lady  friend  from  a  neigh- 
boring town  called  and  detained  her  somewhat, — not  over  fifteen  min- 
utes. After  searching  about  three  hours  without  success,  she  determined 
to  inform  the  police.  This  was  done  between  ten  and  eleven  o'clock  at 
night,  by  Dr.  Rushlanb.  Mrs.  Leib  spent  a  night  of  woe,  as  may  be 
imagined.  But  few  persons  knew  of  the  occurrence  as  yet,  and  Dr.  R's 
family  believed  the  boy  had  played  with  the  neighbors'  children  and 
turned  in  with  some  of  them  for  the  night.  With  these  and  other  con- 
jectures, Mrs.  L.  wore  out  the  hours  of  the  night,  in  the  hope  that  the 
early  morning  would  bring  some  good  tidings. 

But  when  in  the  morning  she  personally  met  three  policemen  who  had  not 
heard  a  word  of  the  occurrence,  she  felt  deeply  disappointed,  and  doubted 
whether  the  police  had  been  as  faithful  as  they  should  have  been  the 
previous  evening.  She  then  went  to  the  police  station  herself,  and  again 
requested  that  the  case  be  made  known.  She  then  visited  all  the  schools 
in  the  city,  Catholic,  private,  and  public. 

As  still  but  few  persons  knew  of  it,  and  she  was  making  her  visits  to 
the  schools  on  foot,  it  took  her  most  of  the  day.  She  then  informed 
some  of  the  newspaper  men,  (who  had  not  yet  heard  a  word  of  it,)  and 
the  "  Quincy  Evening  Call,"  of  that  day,  June  27th,  published  the  first 
notice  of  his  disappearance.  As  this  paper  did  not  circulate  much  among 
our  friends,  but  few  of  them  heard  of  it  until  next  morning,  when  a  fuller 
account  appeared  in  the  Quincy  "Whig."  Then  our  friends  called  and 
offered  such  assistance  as  was  in  their  power. 

As  yet  there  was  nothing  known  as  to  where  he  was  really  last  seen  ; 
but  acting  on  the  supposition  that  he  had  perished  somewhere,  each 


428  APPENDIX. 

began  making  such  search  as  seemed  best.     All  this  time  I  was  still  in 
Chicago,  in  ignurance  of  the  sad  alTair. 

My  wife  had  made  repeated  attempts  to  telegraph  to  me,  but  was  dis- 
suaded by  friends,  who  fell  sanguine  that  the  Iwy  would  be  found,  and  so 
believing,  thought  best  not  to  bring  me  home  uselessly.  Dut  when  on 
Wednesday  evening  he  had  not  been  heard  from,  I  was  telegraphed  to, 
«s  stated  heretofore.  On  my  way  home  that  night,  my  most  dreadful 
reflections  were,  that  so  much  time  had  already  elapsed  since  he  disap- 
peared— two  days  and  three  nights. 

In  the  search  which  was  instituted  at  the  citizens'  meeting,every  con* 
ceivable  place  was  thoroughly  explored.  Lumber  yards,  lofts,  cellar-ways, 
store- boxes,  sink-holes,  sewers,  bridges,  vaults,  cisterns,  bams,  empty 
buildings,  etc.,  were  embraced.  The  house  wheie  we  boarded  was  about 
three-fourths  of  a  mile  from  the  river.  The  child  was  much  afraid  of 
water,  of  the  river  especially,  and  would  not  have  gone  there  unless  in- 
duced by  other  children ;  but  no  children  were  found  who  saw  him  or 
knew  of  his  whereabouts  that  evening,  except  the  case  that  will  be 
mentioned.  Again,  there  was  a  night  watchman,  who  patroled  the  shore 
of  the  river,  and  who  went  on  duty  early  in  the  evening.  However,  to 
provide  for  the  one  contingency  of  his  having  lost  his  life  there,  against 
the  ninety-nine  that  he  had  not,  watchers  were  placed  at  different  places 
for  many  miles  down  the  river.  The  large  reward  offered  induced  very 
many  persons,  who,  between  Quincy  and  St.  Louis,  lived  on  and  along 
the  river,  to  make  s}>ecial  efforts  in  the  way  of  watch  and  search,  espe- 
cially a  number  of  tishennen,  who  daily  frequented  the  river  below  the 
city,  and  also  the  workmen  who  were  then  engaged  in  building  a  bridge 
across  the  river  about  fifteen  miles  below,  at  Hannibal. 

Supposing  he  had  been  drowned,  the  body  would,  in  the  very  warm 
wcither  at  the  time,  have  come  to  the  surface;  but  while  within  three 
or  four  months  other  bodies,  (some  of  children,)  were  found,  no  trace  of 
Freddie  was  ever  discovered.  It  should  also  be  added  that  the  river 
was  very  low  at  this  time,  and  that  many  persons  searched  for  the  child 
who  were  actuated  only  by  feelings  of  sympathy  and  friendship. 

Handbills  and  other  advertisements  followed  in  rapid  succession,  sent 
out  with  photographs,  &c.,  very  similar  to  what  h-is  since  been  done  in 
the  Ross  case.  Hundreds  of  stories  of  "  lost "  children,  or  children  that 
seimed  "strange  and  uncomfortable,"  came  to  us,  and  many  times  in 
our  great  anxiety  we  scarcely  knew  in  what  direction  to  act  first. 

About  the  fifth  day  after  his  disappearance  the  following  was  related 
to  me,  which  I  have  every  reason  to  believe  is  reliable  so  far  as  it  goes ; 


APPENDIX.  429 

and  strange  to  say,  the  substance  of  this  item  was  told  my  wife  before  I 
returned  from  Chicago,  but  which,  in  her  bewildered  condition,  and  amid 
the  many  things  told  her  at  the  time,  she  either  did  not  notice,  or  else 
overlooked,  viz  :  That  as  near  seven  o'clock  as  could  be  determined  by 
other  circumstances,  our  little  Freddie  stepped  into  a  harness  shop  around 
on  the  north  side  of  the  block,  (on  the  southwest  corner  of  which  were 
our  living  quarters,)  and  there  asked  for  some  straps  to  put  on  his  whip- 
lash, remarking  that  he  "  was  going  to  get  a  ride."  The  regular  hands 
of  the  shop  had  left;  only  the  proprietor's  son,  a  boy  about  fourteen  years 
old,  was  there.  He  knew  Freddie  well,  because  I  passed  the  door  of 
the  shop  every  day  on  my  way  to  and  from  the  Seminary,  and  frequently 
had  Freddie  wilh  me.  This  boy  gave  him  straps,  and  then  went  up 
stairs  to  his  supper,  not  looking  after  Freddie  at  all  as  he  left  the  shop, 
but  simply  seeing  him  step  out  on  the  sidewalk. 

When  Freddie's  disappearance  was  reported,  this  boy  told  his  mother, 
and  she  then  remembered  that  she  herself  had  seen  Freddie  in  the  shop 
at  the  time  her  son  gave  him  the  straps. 

Several  days  later,  reliable  information  was  received,  that  the  day  after 
Freddie,  disappeared,  an  old  man  with  a  rickety  buggy  was  seen  in  the 
eastern  suburban  part  of  the  city,  going  toward  the  country.  He  had  a 
little  boy  with  him,  who  was  crying  and  apparently  much  displeased.  As 
this  old  man  passed  a  hbuse  that  stood  at  the  fork  of  two  roads,  he  noticed 
a  number  of  children  in  the  yard  (some  of  whom  were  fifteen  years  old) 
flying  a  kite ;  and  as  if  to  further  pacify  the  boy,  who  already  had  his 
hands  full  of  candies  and  the  like,  he  stopped  and  induced  the  children 
to  sell  him  their  kite,  to  please  the  crying  boy.  When  asked  why  the 
little  boy  cried  and  was  so  uneasy,  he  replied  that  he  probably  felt  a  little 
strange  because  he  was  only  his  uncle,  and  had  just  taken  the  child  out 
of  the  Orphan  Asylum,  and  was  taking  him  to  his  home. 

An  Irish  man-servant  across  the  street  also  saw  the  man  and  boy,  but 
was  a  little  too  far  off  to  understand  the  conversation. 

These  young  folks,  supposing  the  man  told  the  truth,  thought  no  more 
about  it,  until  the  news  of  Freddie's  loss  became  generally  known. 

A  statement  was  also  fully  substantiated,  that  during  the  first  night 
Freddie  was  gone,  a  child  was  frequently  heard  crying  bitterly  in  the 
direction  of  a  large  timothy-grass  field,  in  the  outer  edge  of  the  city. 
Those  who  heard  the  cries  supposed  them  to  come  from  some  children 
living  beyond  this  field ;  but  these  families  stated  that  none  of  their  child- 
ren had  been  crying  during  that  night. 

When  these  stories  were  made  known  to  us,  we  sent  detectives  and 


430  APPENDIX. 

messengers  into  all  parts  of  the  county,  on  horseback  and  otherwise,  and 
posted  hand-bills  in  every  post-office  in  that  and  the  adjoining  counties. 

1  will  now  simply  indicate  some  of  the  circumstances  that  led  to  the 
supposition  that  he  had  been  carried  away  : 

During  the  week  immediately  preceding,  an  unusually  large  number 
of  Italian  organ-grinders  infested  the  city.  There  were  not  less  than 
thirty  or  forty,  distributed  in  parlies  of  from  three  to  five.  A  so-called 
Yankee  Robinson  show  exhibited  in  Quincy  the  Saturday  preceding  this 
unlucky  Monday,  and  some  of  the  teams  and  men  did  not  get  away  until 
Monday.  There  were  Gipsies  in  several  places  within  four  or  five  miles 
of  the  city ;  but  all  these  people,  Italians,  showmen  and  Gipsies,  had 
gone  out  of  sight  when  I  arrived  home  and  Freddie's  disappearance  be« 
came  fully  known. 

With  the  aid  of  our  Chief  of  Police  at  the  time,  and  later  that  of  Allan 
Pinkerton  and  his  men,  all  was  done  in  the  premises  that  could  be. 
With  their  aid  and  advice,  such  measures  were  adopted  and  carried  out, 
as  have  since  been  in  the  Charley  Ross  case.  The  cases,  in  all  that  per- 
tains to  the  search,  are  similar,  yea,  almost  identical.  If  Mr.  Ross  and 
I  should  meet,  the  one  would  be  telling  the  other's  story  in  relating  his 
own.  But  as  Mr.  Ross's  misfortune  happened  in  a  large  city,  and  because 
he  had  wealihy  relatives  by  whose  aid  he  could  furnish  far  more  money 
than  I  in  prosecuting  the  search,  and  because  the  indications  wfre  from 
the  first  more  plain  that  his  boy  had  really  been  kidnapped,  his  case 
gained  a  notoriety  far  greater  than  ours. 

But  fully  aware  of  my  child's  indisposition  to  leave  home  uninfluenced 
or  without  permission,  his  terror  of  the  river  or  any  large  body  of  water, 
the  character  and  extent  of  the  search  that  was  made  for  him,  as  well  as 
of  what  has  since  been  done,  and  more  especially  his  going  into  the 
shop  for  straps,  remarking  that  he  was  going  to  •'  get  a  ride,"  and  the 
other  peculiar  incidents  related,  I  am  convinced  that  my  son  was  kid- 
napped ;  and  I  may  add  that  in  this  impression  I  am  sustained  by  every 
detective  to  whom  I  have  been  able  to  present  the  case  in  all  its  phases. 

I  had  not  much  money,  else  I  should  have  spent  far  more.  I  presume 
jf7,ooo  will  cover  it;  but  this  totally  impoverished  me. 

The  pictures  of  Freddie  that  were  sent  out.  are  copies  of  a  good  one 
taken  in  Davenport,  Iowa,  when  he  was  a  little  over  three  years  old. 
But  in  his  facial  appearance  he  had  changed  very  little,  if  any.  He  was 
one  month  less  than  five  years  old  when  he  disappeared.  He  was  pas- 
sionately fond  of  music,  had  a  good,  sweet  voice,  and  could  sing  verses 
of  several  Sunday-school  Hymns,  and  aho  of  the  song  called  "Old  Dog 
Tray." 


APPENDIX.  43 1 

His  eyes  were  dark  blue ;  his  hair  quite  dark  brown,  with  considerable 
inclination  to  curl,  especially  when  long.  Fair  complexion,  rosy  cheeks, 
dimple  in  chin,  and  also  in  cheeks  when  he  smiled.  Had  lost  none  of 
his  first  teeth,  which  were  small  and  close-set.  Had  several  little  moles 
on  back  of  his  neck  and  shoulders.  Had  two  crowns  where  hair  sepa-^ 
rates  (most  persons  having  but  one).  Was  vaccinated  on  left  arm,  well 
up  toward  the  shoulder,  in  two  places  about  one- half  an  inch  apart,  just 
A  little  while  before  we  lost  him.  Still  hoping,  I  remain, 
Truly  yours, 

WM.  H.  LEIB,  Professor  of  Music, 

Now  residing  in  St.  Paul,  Minn. 
All  persons  wishing  information  in  the  above  matter,  or  having  any* 
thing  to  impart  that  may  assist  me,  will  please  address 

J.  R.  CLEVELAND,  General  Detective, 

St.  Paul,  Minn. 


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